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Garnell University Library
Sthaca, New York
CHARLES WILLIAM WASON
COLLECTION
CHINA AND THE CHINESE
THE GIFT OF
CHARLES WILLIAM WASON
CLASS OF 1876
1918
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http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924023427564
ehh.
CANTONESE MADE EASY
A BOOK OF SIMPLE SENTENCES IN THE CANTONESE LANGUAGE, WITH
FREE AND LITERAL TRANSLATIONS, AND DIRECTIONS
FOR THE RENDERING OF ENGLISH GRAM-
MATICAL FORMS IN CHINESE.
一 一 光一 一
THIRD EDITION.
REVISED AND ENLARGED.
BY
J. DYER BALL, maras., etc.,
OF HIS MAJESTY'S CIVIL SERVICE, HONGKONG.
Author of ‘ Easy Sentences in the Hakka Dialect with a Vocabulary,’ ‘ How to speak
Cantonese,’ ‘ The Cantonese-made-Easy Vocabulary,’ ‘ Readings in Cantonese
Colloquial,’ ‘ An English-Cantonese Pocket Vocabulary without
the Chinese Characters or Tonic Marks,’ ‘ Hakka
Made Easy,’ and 1 Things Chinese,’
ete., ete., etc.
KELLY & WALSH, LIMITED,
SINGAPORE—HONGKONG—SHANGHAI—YOKOHAMA.
1907.
[ALL RIGHTS RESERVED]
CANTONESE MADE EASY
A BOOK OF SIMPLE SENTENCES IN THE CANTONESE LANGUAGE, WITH
FREE AND LITERAL TRANSLATIONS, AND DIRECTIONS
FOR THE RENDERING OF ENGLISH GRAM-
MATICAL FORMS IN CHINESE.
<> >
和 一
THIRD EDITION.
REVISED AND ENLARGED,
ra
oo
BY
J. DYER BALL, maras., etc.
OF HIS MAJESTY’S CIVIL SERVICE, HONGKONG.
Author of ‘ Easy Sentences in tha Hakka Dialect with a Vocabulary,’ ‘ How to speak
Cantonese,’ ‘ The Cantonese-made-Easy Vocabulary,’ ‘ Readings in Cantonese
Colloquial,’ ‘ An English-Cantonese Pocket Vocabulary without
the Chinese Characters or Tonic Marks,’ ‘ Hakka
Made Easy,’ and ‘ Things Chinese,’
ete., etc., ete.
KELLY & WALSH, LIMITED,
SINGAPORE—HONGKONG—SHANGHAI—YOKOHAMA.
1907.
[ALL RIGHTS RESERVED]
&
W aam
PLIT35
Bie:
1907
W114 8%
WORKS BY THE SAME AUTHOR :一
The Cantonese-Made-Easy Series, and other Works, as follows :一
“THINGS CHINESE,’ 4th Edition.
‘ CANTONESE MADE Easy,’ 3rd Edition, Part I.
Do. do. Part IT.
‘ READINGS IN CANTONESE COLLOQUIAL.’
‘THE CANTONESE-MabDE-Easy VocABULARY， 3rd Edition. (In the Press.)
‘ Easy SENTENCES IN THE CANTONESE DIALECT，with a VocaBucLary,’ being the first
part of ‘CANTONESE MADE Easy,’ and the whole of the Cantonese-Made-Easy
Vocabulary bound in one volume. (Out of Print.)
“AN ENGLISH-CANTONESE POCKET VOCABULARY.’
‘Easy SENTENCES IN THE Hakka DIALECT, with a VOCABULARY.’
“HAKKA MADE Easy,’ Part I.
How To WRITE THE Rapicats,’ 2nd Edition.
‘How ro WRITE CHINESE, 2nd Edition, Part I.
‘THE San WUI DIALECT.’
‘THE TUNG Kwtw Diacecr.’
‘Tue HONG SHAN, ov Macao DiAcrct.’
‘Tue SHUN Tak DIALECT.’
‘ Tue ENGLISH-CHINESE CooKERY Book.’ (Out of Print )
‘THE RELIGIOUS ASPECT IN CHINA.’
‘Macao: Tue Hoty City: THE GEM OF THE ORIENT 下 ARTH.
‘Five THOUSAND YEARS OF JOHN CHINAMAN.’
‘ RHYTHMS AND RHYMES IN CELESTIAL CLIMES, ov CHINESE PoETRY.” (In the Press.)
‘Is BuppHIsM A HINDRANCE OR A HELP TO CHRISTIAN Missions.’ (In the Press.)
‘ How To SPEAK PipGIn-EnG.isu.’ (Ready shortly.)
CONTENTS.
PREFACES.
Preface to the First Edition
” » Second Edition
” ” Third Edition
INTRODUCTION.
The Cantonese Language
The Court Pronunciation of Pure Cantonese ...
The Tones ... 5 ae 过
Methods of Describing Tones
List of Tones
Division of the Tones
Description of the Tones ...
The Variant Tones
Marks to Designate the Tones ...
Tonic Exercises see
Aspirated and Non-aspirated Words
Long and Short Vowels ...
Pronunciation
Syllabary
LESSONS.
Abbreviations
The Numerals
Lesson I.—Domestic
本 II, 一 General _..... sie 二 ae
» I1].—General
» IWV—
” V.—
XII
XV
XVIII
XXV
XXV
XXVI
XXVI
XXX
XXXIV
XXXVIII
XLV
XLIX
LHI
LIV
~
on nan > 日
IO
12
Lessons VI.—Relationships
Nouns
Articles
VII.—Opposites
VITI.—Monetary
1X.—Commercial
又 ,一 3
XI.—Medical
XII.—Ecclesiastical
XIII.—Nautical ...
XIV.—Judicial
XV.—Education
Classifiers, etc.
Adjectives
Numeral Adjectives
Dates
Pronouns
Adjective Pronouns
Verbs
Adverbs
Prepositions...
Conjunctions
Interjections
Finals
Simple Directions
Final Directions
GRAMMAR.
APPENDIX.
Excursus 1.—Chinese Grammar
??
3》
2.—Differences between the Book Language and Colloquial
3-—Reasons why Europeans speak Cantonese poorly
4.—Titles of Respect
5.-—Trisyllabic Compounds
INDEX.
Page.
14
16
18
20
wm “22
24
26
28
30
32
36
44
44
62
66
68
73
78
83
. 108
. 114
..。 118
. 120
. 121
. 128
. 128
- 133
. 133
+ 135
+ 239
. 146
< PREFACE.
PREFAGE
TQ THE FIRST EDITION.
— 1 —____—
*
THIS little book is meant to supply a want. The Author has heard a
beginner in Chinese sadly lamenting the difficulty he had in the use of his
phrase-book to know what the Chinese words really meant. Before him and
before many a learner, there appear on the opened pages of his book sentences
in English and sentences in Chinese. He reads the English and his Chinese
teacher reads the Chinese over to him until he learns the sounds. By dint of
memory he learns that a certain English sentence is expressed in Chinese by
certain Chinese words, which he supposes are the equivalents of the English
words; but as soon as he commences to analyse the two sentences—to place
them side by side, he finds that there seems to be very little similarity
between the two. The one often has more words by far than the other; there
are no numbers, no moods, no tenses, or but halting expedients to represent
them, which are well nigh unintelligible to him; and the use of his dictionary,
at first, affords him but little assistance in his attempts to pick asunder the
component parts of a Chinese sentence, for either he does not find the word
that is given in his phrase-book, or he is embarrassed by the multiplicity of
renderings for one word.
Arrangement of this Book.
In some of the first books in Cantonese and English by the veteran
sinologists, this difficulty was in a great measure met by a literal as well as a
free translation being given of the Chinese. The Author has resuscitated
this old plan and trusts it will be found of service. In some cases it will be
found, however, that it has been well nigh impossible, on account of the
idiomatic differences of the two languages, to give a perfectly intelligible and
literal rendering of the Chinese; for it sometimes happens, as GEORGE
MacDonatp well remarks, that :一 Tt is often curious how a literal rendering,
‘even when it gives quite the meaning, will not do, because of the different
II
PREFACE.
‘ranks of the two words in their respective languages.’ (Adela Cathcart, p. 34-)
Yet, with the object of pointing out the connection of the different words
and their respective places in the sentence, even a poor literal translation
will assist the learner far better to grasp the construction of the sentence and
the real meaning of the words than a free translation, which must necessarily
often be but a paraphrase of the Chinese.
When two or more English words represent one Chinese word, the
Author has, in the literal translation, connected them by a hyphen, and the
same holds good of the Chinese and English. Any exceptions to this are so
plain that there is no necessity to make any note of them.
The fault of most phrase-books in Chinese is the multiplying Chinese
words in a sentence; especially do such books delight in a redundancy of
particles ; one is almost sickened by a glance through some of the phrase-books
in use where ‘ko ko”, oni ko’, ke’, and many other particles are brought in at
any time and every time to the detriment of the learner’s fluency in speaking.
The consequence of this fault is that learners pile up the component parts of
a sentence until the outcome is something wonderful to hearken to, and more
like a foreign language than good Chinese. The Chinese are fonder of
expressing themselves in a terse and concise manner than most book-makers
represent them as doing. Redundant words are cut out of good Chinese
colloquial with an unsparing hand: and it would be a good thing for a learner
to lay it down as a general rule that if it is possible to express his meaning
with few words, he should do so; for though to his own ear the addition of
words may make the meaning plainer, it has probably a directly contrary
effect on a Chinese ear.
Compare :一
SNéi lai td” oni shi” k‘ap, “péf ‘ko ko? ‘shi kwo? Sngo ‘t'af kin? da.
and
cLaf oni shi? ‘péi Sko po? shit Sngo ‘traf,
There is often also no distinction made in phrase books between the
colloquial and book language: immediately after a sentence which would be
understood by any woman or child comes one so bookish that if the learner
were to attempt to air his newly-acquired knowledge, thus obtained, out of
the range of his study or of the ears of his erudite teacher, he would find his
talk utterly unintelligible to the mass of his hearers. In short, a hotchpotch
of anything and everything is thrown together, mixed and pure, Cantonese
and provincialisms, and the result is a phrase-book.
Many of the simplest and commonest forms of expression are entirely
omitted even in books of considerable size where want of space could be no
excuse.
PREFACE.
III
There is often also apparent in these books an evident attempt to put
the English sentence, which the compiler chooses, into Chinese, ignoring
often to a great extent the simple fact that the idiom is essentially English ;
and the result is a sentence composed of Chinese words, which is either
constructed on an English idiom wholly foreign to the genius of the language,
or stilted in order to convey the whole meaning of the English sentence into
Chinese; or else the two sentences are not the counterparts of each other,
and the learner is misled.
Knowing these defects, the Author has endeavoured to avoid them.
It appeared to him that a compiler should endeavour above everything
else to have his Chinese perfect and readable, or shun, as a Chinese would
term it, and then try his best to render the Chinese into English. Under
such conditions there is more likelihood of getting good Chinese into our
phrase-books than when the opposite plan is tried.
Daily intercourse for nearly a quarter of a century with all classes of
Chinese in their daily life, and years of daily contact with all grades of
Chinese in the course of his official duties, where no attempts, or but few, are
made to adapt themselves to the foreign ear, have placed him, he believes, in
an exceptionally favourable position to hear and note the different idioms of
good Cantonese. He has endeavoured to embody a number of them in this
book, which, if it meets with a favourable reception, might induce him to
attempt something more pretentious on a future occasion.
Nothing, he hopes, will be found amongst the fifteen Lessons but pure
good colloquial ; and from the examples given in that part of the book, as
well as in the part which follows, the learner will be able to frame other
sentences.
In learning Cantonese the learner should aim first at acquiring such
common idioms and such words as to make himself understood by even the
illiterate class, for then all classes will understand him. Starting in this
manner he will lay a good solid foundation for his colloquial, which will stand
him in good stead all through his stayin China. After this foundation is laid
he can easily acquire the mixed colloquial, composed principally of what he
has already learned, and partly of book terms; and if he has previously pleased
the illiterate ear, qualify himself to please the fastidious taste of the scholar.
Though there is no hard and fast line between these two forms of colloquial,
as they merge more or less into each other, there is still a distinction. And
the learner should keep this distinction in his mind and ask his teacher whether
any new phrase he comes across is colloquial or not. Without this precau-
tion he will find himself talking in a most ridiculous style, at one breath, as it
were, using Johnsonian words and pure English.
IV
PREFACE.
In most, if not all, phrase-books the tones seem to be a thing of secondary
importance. If the compiler carefully gives the tones, as he finds them in
his dictionary, he congratulates himself on at least stretching a point. As a
general rule, no attempt is ever made to give the tones as they are spoken,
or, when the attempt has been made, the compiler has had so little idea of the
frequency of difference between colloquial and book tones that his attempts
to point one or two out have not been of the practical use they might
have been. It is one thing to read a book and utter all the tones correctly,
but quite another thing to explain to a Chinese the contents of a few pages
thereof, and if the speaker sticks to the same tones in speaking as in reading
he will not find all he saysis understood. It is, the Author believes, an
ignoring of this fact that often spoils foreigners’ Chinese. The awkward
thing about ignoring these tones in books, for the use of those who wish to
learn to speak Chinese, is that the learner attempts to say the word in the
tone that he sees it marked in his book or dictionary, the consequence being
that he systematically mispronounces it, while if the tone were marked
properly, he would at least attempt to pronounce it properly.
The colloquial tones in this book are given instead of those used in the
book language.
It will be noticed that occasionally the tones of one word are different
in different connections.
Learners may at once make up their minds to the belief that there are
more tones in the Chinese than many of the old scholars will give credit for.
The chung yap is introduced in this phrase book. The man who pretends to
doubt its existence may as well confess at once that he knows nothing about
differences in tones ; it was well known by one or two of the older sinologists
in olden times, but was well-nigh forgotten until unearthed recently. There,
perhaps, is more excuse for the scepticism that exists about some of the
other tones, though there can be no doubt as to their existence. i: if
x as * i * * * *
Instead, then, of only eight tones in Cantonese, it is the fact that there are
sixteen well-defined tones at least, and possibly one or two others as well,
affecting only a very few words. This last need not, however, trouble the
learner at first. It is well that he should know at the same time that he
must not attempt to fit every Chinese word into the only tone, perchance,
assigned to it by the dictionaries. Cantonese will not be confined in that
way, and much of the poor pronunciation of Chinese in the past by
Europeans is on account of their persistent attempts to pronounce all Chinese
words as if they must belong to one or other of the eight or nine tones their
dictionaries told them about. Get a good teacher, then copy him exactly, no
matter what your dictionary may say about the tone of the word; for it is
7 PREFACE.
important that the beginner, who wishes to do more than just run a chance
of being partially understood, should pay particular attention to these import-
ant tones, though at the same time let him not run into the other extreme
of hesitating before he utters a word to think what tone it should be in. If
he can manage to get fluent in Chinese idioms, an occasional mistake in the
tones is not of such vital importance, though to be deprecated.
Grammar.
The Directions for rendering English Grammatical Forms and Idioms
into Chinese and vice versd will, it is hoped, prove of service in enabling the
beginner to form a conception of the mode in which English grammatical
forms may be rendered in Chinese, a language which at first sight appears
to be devoid of all grammar. The construction of the component parts and
the building up of the sentence from its component phrases will also appear
to a certain extent.
The notes are not exhaustive, but it is hoped that they are of sufficient
variety and length to give the learner such an idea of the construction of the
colloquial, and of many of its idioms, as to enable him to avoid egregious errors.
So little has been attempted in this way hitherto, that it is with
considerable difidence one makes the attempt to lay down instructions, when
hitherto the learner has generally had to bungle on as well as he could himself.
It is hoped, however, that the experience of one who has made the study
of Chinese a life-work will not prove useless to the beginner.
The study of Chinese is sufficiently difficult to make every little hint a
desideratum.
Final Particles.
The Final Particles are most useful little words, quite altering the whole
force of the sentence when differently applied. These little particles at the
end of a sentence are often put to a dreadful martyrdom in beginners’ books.
The student must not suppose that, because they are so plentifully sprinkled
over the pages of his book, he cannot close his mouth without enunciating
one or two of them, as he would punctuate each of his written sentences.
They are, in fact, often left out, with advantage ; but when left out, to make up
for their absence, the voice lingers often on the last word in the sentence
longer than it would otherwise do, and with a peculiar intonation and rising
inflection, going, in fact, into a Rising Tone. At other times it goes into the
variant of the Upper Even Tone, the tone taking often the place of the final,
though at the same time these tones are often used with finals as well.
Too little attention has been paid to them hitherto. Our dictionaries
do not contain all that are in use. A list appears of as many as the compiler
VI
PREFACE.
has been able to discover up to the present time with their tonal variations ;
but it is not at all improbable that there are more to be discovered. Nearly
half of this list is not to be found in the dictionaries. If the finals used in
the different dialects and sub-dialects of Cantonese were included, the list
might be made of an enormous length, as, for instance, in the Shun-tak
dialect, to mention a few instances amongst many, we have the finals, té1, ti,
and others, besides those in use in pure Cantonese.
This is, however, not the place to go into a dissertation on the finals,
but the hint may be of use if taken advantage of, for there are a great many
more shades of meaning to be expressed by a proper use of these little words
than most Europeans have ever dreamt of.
Chinese Characters.
The Chinese characters are given more as a guide to the teacher than for
use by the beginner. If the latter can and will take advice it is this :一 Don't
trouble yourself with the character, or the book language at first. If you will
learn the characters, learn them out of the colloquial books for the first year,
and then, when you are tolerably proficient in colloquial, a knowledge of the
book way of expressing what you have already acquired in colloquial will not
be apt to confuse you, or spoil your colloquial.
One thing at a time is enough. If you wish to speak Chinese well, learn
to speak it before you learn to read it. A Chinese child learns to speak his
native tongue before he learns to read it; and yet we, go-ahead Westerners,
think we know better than Dame Nature, and insist on learning two
languages (the book language and the colloquial) at the same time—two
languages which, be it remembered, are so alike and yet so dissimilar as to
create no end of a confusion in the tyro’s brain. The result is that we
produce but few good speakers of Chinese.
Above all things let him who would speak Chinese not be ashamed to
talk whenever he has a chance. Air his Chinese at all times: it will get
musty ifhe does not. What does it matter if he does make mistakes at first ?
If he finds he is not understood when he puts a thing in one way, then let him
put it in another. He should try to get up a pretty extensive vocabulary
of apparent synonyms, and by experience and experiment he will learn what
words are best understood by different classes of people, and what are the
right words to use. Of course all this implies a great deal of patience; but
ifa man has no patience, he had better not come to Far Cathay.
Orthography.
The orthography is WILLIAMS'S with the exception of some slight
variations where necessary.
PREFACE.
VII
The classes of variants are given below, so that the scholar may find no
difficulty in using WILLIAMS'"S Tonic Dictionary or E1reEt’s Chinese Dictionary.
In this book. In Williams’ and Eitel’s.
éi { (or iin Eitel’s.)
Ol? asd. o8iay-iasg vase ciaas> GR ET
OU ase aie. eee dee eee ve
WU see). Sik AVG ae ee Gee A
Yi. dee ae Sa oak. ca! aye: OP La Eels)
lf the beginner would be a good speaker, let him not follow the
pronunciations given in Dictionaries if he finds such to clash with that of
his teacher, provided he has a good one, but imitate the latter. Let him
remember :一
1st. That the dictionaries have been made by Europeans to whom
Chinese was not a native tongue, and that consequently they are not free
from errors.
2nd. Also let him remember that at the best it is but a halting
expedient to attempt to represent Chinese sounds by the letters of an
alphabet, which, as we are accustomed to use them in our own language, are
never in every case capable of producing the identical Chinese sound.
3rd. Let him also remember that some of the Chinese assistants that
Dictionary makers have depended on for their pronunciations, were not pure
Cantonese speakers.
These several reasons will be sufficient to assure him of the necessity for
adhering to the above advice ; and when he becomes a proficient in the use
of this beautiful (when spoken in its purity) language, he will see an additional
reason in the miserable pronunciation of some Europeans, who have
considered their dictionaries wiser than the Chinese themselves ; and he may
be gratified by being told by the Chinese that his pronunciation is clearer
and better in many respects than many a native's.
In conclusion, the author may express the hope—a hope that has
actuated him throughout the preparation, that this little book will prove a
help in the study of a tongue which he has known and spoken from his
earliest infancy. Should it prove of assistance to those who, unlike him, have
not been able to avail themselves of the easiest and best mode of Icarniny 1,
he will be proud that these efforts have proved capable of assisting those who
desire to acquire a knowledge of this, one of the fincst and oldest: baunpiniypyen
in China.
VIII PREFACE.
His thanks are due to Mr. H. A. Gites of H. M.’s Consular Service
for again permitting him to make use of his arrangement of sentences and
the plan of his book, as far as the first part of it is concerned, which it will
be seen he has considerably enlarged upon.
Mr. A. Fatconer, of the Government Central School, Hongkong, has
also kindly assisted him in correcting proof sheets.
* BS 个
*
After having written out the whole of the lessons, and while they
were in the press, the compiler’s attention was called to Mr. PARKER'S
orthography as applied to the Cantonese: and finding that in one
instance it supplied a want that he had felt, and that in another
instance it represented a sound which had not been brought out
clearly, his spelling in both these instances was modified in
conformity with Mr. Parker’s system. He cannot endorse Mr. PaRrkER’s
attempts in their entirety (his attempts to rid the orthography from
diacritical marks do not always appear to be the best); especially all the
conclusions he arrives at as exemplified by his orthography, that is to
say, if he understands what the spelling always refers to, but unfortunately
his syllabary is printed without any Chinese characters, so that one scarcely
knows what word the new combination of letters always represents. Finding
that in certain cases Mr. Parker’s was an improvement on the current
orthography, other cases have also been referred to Mr. Parker’s syllabary,
and the author must acknowledge occasional assistance he has derived from
such a reference while working by the guidance of his ear to free himself
from the, in too many cases, barbarous and incorrect spellings used by the
dictionaries. He has been pleased to find, on reference to Mr. PARKER'S
syllabary, that he also had arrived in the majority of instances at the same
conclusions that the author had. This, he trusts, will give more confidence
in the accuracy of those sounds represented by Mr. Parker and himself to
those who may be inclined to look with suspicion upon and doubt the
propriety of any change, however simple, in the admirable adaptation of
Sir WiLL1AM Jones's system of spelling made in his younger days by that
venerable and learned sinologist, Dr. WiLLiams.
J. DYER BALL.
HoncGKonG, 1883.
PREFACE.
IX
PREFACE
TO THE SECOND EDITION,
Sd
Iv is now rather more than four years since the first edition, of five
hundred copies, of this book was published. Uncertain of the success of the
venture at the time the pamphlet was but limited in its scope. The disposal
of the first edition and the approval the book has met with has led the
author to issue a second edition of the same work, which, though
running on the same lines as the first edition, has been considerably
enlarged. The first part, that containing the fifteen lessons, may at first
sight appear to be the same in the two editions, but though the same
number of pages are occupied, it will be found that there are many more
sentences in this part of the book than formerly. Great care has also been
exercised in a careful revision of the lessons, and here the author must
acknowledge the great assistance rendered to him by the Hon. J. H.
Stewart Lockuart, C.M.G., who kindly volunteered to assist him.
In the second, or Grammatical portion, it will be seen that thirty-six
pages are added. A new table of the Classifiers has been drawn up, from
which it has been attempted to exclude words not rightly entitled to the
name of Classifiers, though often so called, and these words have been placed
in a list by themselves. <A better table of the Personal Pronouns has also
been prepared. An important addition has likewise been the lists of the
idiomatic uses of verbs, and other additions, it will be seen, have been
made, all of which the author trusts will make the book more useful. The
old matter has also been revised.
A new feature appears in the shape of an Index to the Second part, which
will no doubt render reference to passages sought for easier than with the
help of the table of contents alone, which is still retained. In the Introduc-
tion the tones have been more fully treated.
It has been the author's endeavour in what may be called the Grammatical
portion of the book not so much to lay down Grammatical Rules describing
the structure of the language irrespective of its analogy to other
PREFACE.
languages; but it has been his aim so to word these rules as to
show the learner the difference between his native language and that
he is endeavouring to acquire, for in detecting the points of resem-
blance and difference between his own language and one foreign to him will
he be the better able to appreciate the similarity and dissimilarity between
the two languages. It is but a waste of time to draw up a Chinese
Grammar on the same lines as an English Grammar; such Grammars are
useful to those who wish to learn the structure of their own language, but to
those who already know something of the Grammar of one language this
knowledge is best utilised by being used as a vantage ground. The know-
ledge already acquired is compared with what itis desired to acquire. The
mind instead of being burdened with going over old ground has its powers
left free to tabulate the new knowledge under the two heads of ‘the same as
I learnt before, I do not need to trouble about that,’ and the other head of
‘this is different from what I learnt before, I must try and remember this.’
Any learner who desires to acquire a new language, if he wishes to make
any progress, must consciously or unconsciously thus tabulate his knowledge.
If it is not already done for him in the books he uses, his time is taken up
with wading through a mass of rules and examples to pick out what is new to
him. His time is saved and the acquisition of the language rendered easier
if it is done beforehand for him.
Exception has been taken by one or two to the use of the literal
translation of the Chinese into English on account of its barbarous nature,
but its manifest advantages to the beginner are so obvious, not only
theoretically but in actual practice in the use of this book, that the
author's predilections in its favour are confirmed. As to its being
barbarous, what does barbarous mean? Simply that anything is outside of
our pale of civilization and customary mode of expression, etc. A literal
translation of any language into English proves more or less barbarous:
this is even true with regard to the classic languages of ancient Greece and
Rome.
As a hint to the use this literal translation may be put, the following
passage is given from an essay by Procror with regard to the use of literal
translations, such as the Hamiltonian method is based on, the literal transla-
tion employed by the author of the present work being very like those.
Mr. Proctor says:—‘ Take then first * * a passage * * and go
carefully over it, word for word as it stands. * * * Next, read it over
several words at atime. After this, read the English through alone, and
then turn to the original, and read that through. You will find that by this
time you can read the original understandingly. Take the passage next
* * and turn it into English by a free translation—not too free, but just
PREFACE.
XI
free enough to be good English. Now follows what in practice I found the
most improving part of the whole work. Make a word-for-word translation
in the exact order of the words in the original, and note what this tells you
of the character of the idiom and also of the mental peculiarities of the nation
who * * own thelanguage you are dealing with.’ (Miscellaneous Essays,
by R. A. Procter.)
J. DYER BALL.
Honckone, 1887.
PREFACE.
PREFACK
TO THE THIRD EDITION,
Spee a Bae
A NUMBER of years has now passed since the second edition of a
thousand copies of this book was published, and it has been out of print for
some time. The author regrets the long delay and the impossibility of
providing the numerous students with this vade mecum before now.
Some additions, it will be noticed, have been made to this edition.
Attention has been most fully called to those most important tones—the
variants, which form a part of the very language itself; and whose very
existence has been most grudgingly acknowledged by foreigners—the cachet
of recognition being still largely denied them, and yet it is impossible to
speak Chinese (Cantonese) correctly without constantly using them. A
book might be written on their uses and occurrences.
It being so absolutely necessary to employ the correct titles and forms
of address when speaking to natives of different status, or when speaking of
one’s own countrymen of different social standing, a list of forms of
addresses, used in conversation with the persons themselves, whether relatives
or strangers, and modes of mentioning them when talking about them, is one
of the new features in the present edition. It must tend to a still further
lowering of the Chinese idea of the ‘outside barbarian’ to hear his fellow-
countryman style one of their own officials simply sin shdng, when he
is entitled from his position to be spoken of as Jd ye, tdi 1d ye, or tdi yan, to
say nothing of the disuse of respectful terms for relatives.
Another list is that of words of the higgledy-piggledy order, very
commonly used, but very few of which appear in our dictionaries of the
Chinese language.
It is hoped that these and other additions and alterations will tend to
make the book even more useful in the future than it has been in the past.
J. DYER BALL.
HonGKoNG, 1902.
INTRODUCTION. XTII
INTRODUCTION.
THE CANTONESE DIALECT OR LANGUAGE.
AN impression appears to have got abroad that Mandarin is the language
of China, and that Cantonese and the other languages spoken in China are but
dialects of it. The impression is an erroneous one. One might as well say
that Spanish was the language of the Iberian Peninsula and that Portuguese,
as well as the other Romanic languages spoken elsewhere, were dialects of it.
There is no doubt that, as with Spanish in the Peninsula, Mandarin in some
one or other of its various dialects is the language of a large portion of China
(say of thirteen out of the eighteen provinces), but no less is Cantonese in
some one or other of its numerous dialects the language of a great many of the
inhabitants of the two provinces of Kwangtung and Kwangsi, (which two pro-
vinces have a population roughly stated to be equal to that of England). It
is true that the Mandarin is used as a /ingua franca in all official courts and
Government offices throughout the whole of China; but though more than
five hundred years ago, for a considerable time in English history, French
was the Court language of England, yet there was an English language,
though it may have been despised by those who knew nothing but French.
One of the unfortunate things about terming these different languages in
China dialects, is to lead those who know nothing of the subject to suppose
that Cantonese is merely a local patois differentiated from the Mandarin by
dialectic peculiarities, and that those who speak it differ as far from what is
generally supposed to be a correct method of speaking their native tongue, as
a Somerset man or Yorkshireman who speaks his native dialect does from
an educated Englishman, who, by virtue of his education and culture, has
sunk all the peculiarities of pronunciation which inevitably point out the
illiterate countryman.
In fact, the Cantonese is more nearly akin to the ancient language of
China, spoken about 3,000 years ago, than the speech of other parts of China.
It is more ancient itself than the other so-called dialects of China, and to
INTRODUCTION，
prevent any false ideas of its importance the following extract is given from
the Preface to Douctas’ Dictionary of the Amoy language, the statements in
which are equally applicable to Cantonese. It is as follows, viz.:—
‘But such words as ‘“ Dialect” or ‘‘Colloquial” give an erroneous
conception of its nature. It is not a mere colloquial dialect or patois; it is
spoken by the highest ranks just as by the common people, by the most
learned just as by the most ignorant; learned men indeed add a few polite or
pedantic phrases, but these are mere excrescences, (and even they are
pronounced’ according to the Cantonese sounds), ‘while the main body and
staple of the spoken language of the most refined and learned classes is the
same as that of coolies, labourers, and boatmen.
‘Nor does the term ‘‘dialect’’ convey anything like a correct idea of its
distinctive character ; it is no mere dialectic variety of some other language ;
it is a distinct language, one of the many and widely differing languages
which divide among them the soil of China. * * *
‘A very considerable number of the spoken languages of China have
been already more or less studied by European and American residents in the
country, such as the Mandarin, the Hakka, the vernaculars of Canton and
Amoy, and several others. These are not dialects of one language; they
are cognate languages, bearing to each other a relation similar to that which
subsists between the Arabic, the Hebrew, the Syriac, the Ethiopic, and the
other members of the Semitic family ; or, again, between English, German,
Dutch, Danish, Swedish, etc.
‘ There is another serious objection to the use of the term “dialect” as
applied to these languages, namely, that within each of them there exist real
dialects. For instance, the Mandarin contains within itself three very
marked “dialects,” the Northern, spoken at Peking ; the Southern, spoken
at Nanking and Soochow; and the Western, spoken in the Provinces of
Szechuen, Hoopeh, etc.’
It may be stated that it is as absurd for any one who intends to reside in
Hongkong, Canton, or Macao, and who wishes to learn Chinese to take up
the study of Mandarin, as it would be for a German, who was about to settle
in London, to learn French in order to be able to converse with the English.
Cantonese has its ‘ real dialects,’ some of which are spoken by tens of
thousands, or hundreds of thousands of natives, and which if they were
spoken by the inhabitants of some insignificant group of islands in the Pacific
with only a tithe of the population would be honoured by
the name of languages. These ‘subordinate dialects’ of the Cantonese
are again subdivided into many little divisions spoken in
different cities or towns, or groups of cities, towns, and villages where
INTRODUCTION，
XV
peculiar colloquialisms prevail. Some of these dialects of Cantonese are as
follows, viz. :一
The San Wii The Héng Shan The Fa Yiin The Shia Hing
» San Ning » Shun Tak | Ts'ing Yin | ,, Yong Kong
» Yan Ping » Ha Pin Yi ,», Sam Shou » Lin Chat
}, Hoi Ping » Tung Kwan ,, Tsung Fa ,, Shia Kwan
», Hok Shan ,, Wai Chat ,, ShongPanYu ,, Ying Tak
Besides these there are the dialects in the Ha Sz Fa, The Lower Four
Prefectures of the Province.
The correct pronunciation of pure Cantonese.
So far is this minute sub-division carried that even in the city of Canton
itself, the seat and centre of pure Cantonese, more than one pronunciation of
words is used; the standard, however, being the Sai Kwan wa or West End
speech, to which the learner should endeavour to assimilate his talk. It has
been the author’s endeavour to give this pronunciation, or, at all events, the
Cantonese, and the students of this book may take it asa fact that it is
Cantonese, and pure Cantonese, that is given; and that where the author
has corrected the orthography of WILLIAMS and 了 EITEL it is because
this orthography in such cases does not represent pure Cantonese, such,
for instance, as in the spelling of the whole series of words 女 not, Se
hii, etc., which these authors give most unfortunately as mii, hii, etc., such
sounds being abominable Cantonese—not pure Cantonese at all, but
Sai Chit Dialect or some other wretched dialect, notwithstanding they
have the sanction of such sinologues as WILLIAMS, EITEL, and CHALMERS.
Those who know Chinese thoroughly will know that the author is
throwing no slur on the masterly scholarship displayed by these men when
he says that their pronunciation of Cantonese, as shewn by their orthography,
in many instances is neither pure nor correct.
It is a great pity that Dr. Eirer, in his new Dictionary, has not
followed the lead of good speakers of pure Cantonese instead of perpetuating
the mistakes of Dr. WiLtL1ams—mistakes due partly to the implicit follow-
ing of a Chinese author's ideas of pronunciation, and mistakes more excusable
in the olden days than at the present time.
To those who are inclined to be suspicious of any change in an
established orthography of Chinese by Europeans, the fact that the author is
not alone in this changing of the mode of representing another class of sounds
may give more confidence to their acceptance of it, and to those who know
Mr. Parker’s wonderfully acute ear for Chinese sounds the following
extracts may help to confirm their acceptance of such changes.
XVI INTRODUCTION.
‘The only place where a really short ¢ comes’ in, * * is in the
diphthong ¢ (as in feint * *). This sound is * * actually ignored by
Wixtiams in favour of i, as in the English thee, a Cantonese sound which
only exists in one or two colloquial words such as mt, wi, etc.’ China Review,
Vol. 8, p. 364.
And again, ‘ but, unfortunately WILLIAMS uses fi to represent both the ce
and ef as in feel and feint.” China Review, Vol. 8, p. 365.
He again says in a paper on ‘the Comparative study of Chinese dialects,’
published in the transactions of the North China Branch of the Royal Asiatic
Society: ‘In Dr. Wittiams’ dictionary again, several classes of vowels exist-
ing in theory, according to the standard in nubibus, encumber the work, when
one vowel would have stood in each case for them all. One of the nine
regular tones, too, is entirely ignored; and the whole class of colloquial tones
called the pix yam, which form so striking an element of quasi-inflection in the
pure Cantonese dialect, has been completely overlooked. Dr. E1ret, in his
corrected edition of the same Dictionary, has introduced the ninth regular
tone, but he likewise, instead of adhering steadfastly (as did Mr. Wabe in
the case of the Metropolitan Pekingese), to the Metropolitan Cantonese, has,
by overlooking these colloquial tones, once more lost the opportunity of
firmly establishing another standard dialect.’
The opinion of another enthusiastic student of Cantonese, than whom it
is difficult to find one showing greater zeal in all matters connected with the
language, (the author refers to The Hon. J. H. Srewart-Lockuart, C.M.G.),
likewise says :—‘ Itis much to be ‘regretted that Dr. Eiret’s . . Diction-
ary, though excellent in many ways, has not modified the spelling in
Witrrams’.’ China Review. Vol. X., p. 312.
The matter resolves itself into simply this, whether we are to go on
perpetrating mistakes by accepting the orthography of Wit tiams and Erez.
i extenso—in every minute particular, when it is a well-known fact by those
who speak pure Cantonese that this orthography in all its particulars is not
pure Cantonese by a long way, but is mixed up with local pronunciations, or
whether we are to try to get an English transliteration of Chinese sounds,
which shail attempt to approach as near as possible to the standard Can-
tonese, that spoken in the city of Canton itself. That such attempts may be
open to partial failures in some particulars none knows better than the
author himself, but because the matter is a difficult one to tackle there is no
reason why we should go on in the old ruts. They are getting rather worn
out now after half a century of use and it is time that better ways were
followed.
INTRODUCTION. XVII
A curious argument is sometimes used as a reason for not conforming
to a standard—a real standard anda pure one—namely, that it does not
much matter as long as they, the Europeans or Americans, who speak
Chinese are understood. In this argument it is taken for granted that they
must be understood, but they are often not.
A good story is told ofan Englishman in Russia coming across a Russian,
who accosted him in broad Yorkshire to the astonishment of the Briton, the
Russian being under the impression that he was conversing in good English,
he having availed himself of the services of an Englishman to learn his, the
Englishman’s, native language, but unfortunately the teacher spoke a dialect,
Yorkshire, which is not now considered pure English.
This is bad enough, but supposing the Russian, instead of learning from
an Englishman, had used books to acquire the language, and that these
books had taught him to invariably leave off the initial /, as cockneys do ; to
pronounce the s, as ifit were a z, in imitation of the Somerset dialect ;
to pronounce the article te, as if it were at alone, in imitation of Yorkshire ;
and to pronounce every word like bay, day, fay, gay’, hay, jay, lay, may, nay,
pay, ray, say, way, as if they were spelled be, de, fee, gee, he, ge, lea, me, knee,
pea, ve, see, we, and other mispronunciations of the same character. What a
delightful hotch-potch this would be! This then may give an idea of what
results ensue in Chinese from the orthography of some of the books that are
now in use by Europeans for learning Chinese.
What would be thought of an argument to the effect that it mattered
little to the Russian, as many English dropped their 4 all through the length
and breadth of the land, that likewise numbers of genuine Englishmen pro-
nounced the the ast alone, and that there were not a few that pronounced the s
as a z, and that the other mispronunciations were also in use in English ?
And yet the same style of argument is used with regard to these dialectic
pronunciations of Cantonese by some book makers,
The following statement by Mr. Parker is conclusive on the point, except
to those who are prejudiced against any conclusion except their own :一 : The
argument so frequently used that, in the presence of so many conflicting
forms of Cantonese it is unwise to make a special study of one, ought to
condemn itself without demonstration to every logical student, apart from the
obvious fact that the dialect of a metropolis, as spoken by the most highly
educated classes, is primd facie more likely to be a standard and to be more
widely known than a dialect spoken by less educated persons in the country,
or in a town less thickly populated than the metropolis.’—China Review,
Vol. 8, p. 367.
XVIII INTRODUCTION.
THE TONES.
Regarding the Tones one writer says, ‘It is not true that the tones are
an attribute belonging to monosyllabic and isolating languages only. Every
language may be said to have certain tones, recurring under certain
conditions; only they are more pronounced in some languages than in
others, and they are undefined and fluctuating until science gets hold of
them and they are codified. The accents of the Vedas, it appears, like the
Greek accents, were real tones in the Chinese sense, that is to say they
marked not only the stress of the voice, but also its pitch and inflection,
and in our modern European languages, when attention is paid to correct
pronunciation as in works on elocution, the rise and fall of the voice is
carefully indicated.
‘In their inception the tones must, I think, be viewed as a physiological
phenomenon; in their progress they are conventional, and may in the end
become rigid. Languages witha fully developed system of agglutination
or inflection, capable of expressing the various relations of logical synthesis,
may employ them for psychological purposes, to indicate yet finer shades
of meaning or subjective modes not otherwise provided for in the language.
In languages of a lower type, which eschew the use of an elaborate formal
apparatus or are in advanced stage of detrition, they may serve to do duty
as functional marks, either as the result of a spontaneous differentiation
or in consequence of the loss of derivative particles. In any case the accent
will be the more marked and developed, the poorer the stock of phonetic
elements, the feebler the power of composition and derivation, and the
more primitive the grammatical structure. And these conditions are fulfilled
in the highest degree in the monosyllabic languages.
‘With their codification the tones enter upon a new phase of existence.
What was first a habit of the individual, or the custom of a community, is
now invested with the authority of a law. A new and highly artificial
moment begins to operate, and operates the more surely, the greater and
the more universal the influence of letters upon society. Its tendency is
conservative; its effect to retard further development which it cannot
altogether arrest. The system may from time to time adjust itself to the
exigencies of the living tongue, but, asa rule, a wide gulf will separate the
popular idiom from the language of literature; and this applies as well to
the articulation and manner of intonation as to idiomatic peculiarities.
(A. von Rostuorn, Ph. D. in China Review, Vol. XXII, p. 448.)
The Chinese utter the words in the right tone, but the majority of them
do not know anything about tones, more than possessing the ability without
INTRODUCTION. XIX
being aware of the name of the tones, to pronounce them correctly, just as
in English we would give the right emphasis and the right accent to the
words in a sentence.
When the native scholars awoke to the idea of the tones and discovered
that they, as well as all their countrymen and ancestors, had been using tones
all their lives and every time they opened their mouths to speak,
they naturally wished to find out the origin of their use. The Shi King,
“The Book of Odes,’ one of the Chinese Classics, which book contains ‘as
in a mirror, the circumstances, the thoughts, the habits, the joys and sorrows
of persons of all classes of society in China 3,000 years ago,’ affords
by its rhymes the means of studying the tones in the earliest period of
Chinese history. Dr. A. von RosTHORN says regarding this: ‘ A great deal has
‘been written on the rhymes of the Shih by native authors, and the evidence
‘which has been brought to bear upon the subject seems to favour the
‘assumption that the tones existed even in the earliest known specimens of
‘the language, but that they were used unconsciously and with a considerable
‘degree of latitude.’ ‘The conscious discrimination of the tones and their
‘codification were not arrived at until the latter part of the 5th Century,
‘A.D. Chou Yu and Shén Yo are the names usually associated with
‘their discovery; but it is more probable that they were first observed by
‘the Indian missionaries,’ to whom ‘the tones were not an altogether new
‘phenomenon * * * for they had already studied the accents and quantities
‘in the language of the Vedas, and these were the elements out of which
‘the Chinese tones undoubtedly grew.’ As Dr. Epxins says, ‘accustomed to
‘the unrivalled accuracy in phonetic analysis of the Sanscrit alphabet, the
‘Indians would readily distinguish a new phenomenon like this, while to a
‘native speaker, who had never known articulate sounds without it, it would
‘almost necessarily be undetected.’ Dr. EITEL well says, ‘As to the number
“of tones at first used and their characteristics, it is perhaps impossible to say
‘anything definite.’ Minute investigations lead the native scholars to say
there were three tones in existence at the time of the Shi King. The
departing tone, it is said, not coming into use before the Chau dynasty, or, at
least, not before the age of Confucius (551 B. C.).
This departing tone (SEF) was first noticed about A.D. 200—400. We
give this statement for what it may be worth. Another Chinese writer
considers this tone to have arisen about the fourth or fifth century of our era
(Warrers’s Essays on the Chinese Language, p. g5). If this account of the
tones at first having been few in number and added to in the course of
centuries is true, we get a further step in the time of the Sung dynasty
(A.D. g60—1341), when the philologists and lexicographers of those glorious
KX
INTRODUCTION.
days of Chinese literature, (when it attained its acme of excellence), proved
that the four tones were divided into an upper and a lower series. In fact, the
even tone was described, during the same dynasty, but about 200 years later
than the former statement, to be divided into three—upper, middle and even.
It seems to have been left to foreigners to discover during the last fifty
years that other tones existed in China besides the eight thus described above;
and the credit of finding out the middle entering tone and the colloquial
variants in tone is due to non-natives of China, as probably the first discovery
of all of the tones in Chinese was made by Indians.
As the tones are the initial difficulty in learning Chinese, it is well that the
beginner should have his attention drawn at the very first tothem. 了 PREMARE
says: ‘The mere sounds are, as it were, the body of the character, and the
tones are in like manner the spirit.’* This description of the tones, at all
events, contains a just appreciation of their importance. And that learned
sinologue seems so thoroughly to understand the subject that his further
descriptions of the matter form very good answers to the questions: What are
the tones; and are they of any importance? To answer these questions let
us take, for instance, the word Jf ,sin, before. The sound is represented by
the English spelling, sin (pronounced seen) and the tone by that little semi-
circle, but insignificant as that little semi-circle is, yet a right understanding
by a native of the word a European wishes to pronounce is as much conveyed
by that little semi-circle as it is by the English letters sé. Neglect that
little sign and ignore the tone which it stands for, and the native is at a loss
to know what the European means to say.
In other words, Chinese words may be compared to specimens, geological,
botanical, or what you like, ina museum, and in this museum of Chinese
ideas, it is necessary not only that the words, the specimens, should be
arranged in cases or classes, similar in general characteristics, such as
sound, but the differentiation of one from the other, which is already an
accomplished fact, shall be represented in a manner to at once appeal to
the ear. The methods of so distinguishing them is by the tones. These
are the labels to the words to point out clearly what they are.
Tones then are used in this language, so largely monosyllabic that con-
fusion would ensue but for their use. For example, let us take the sound
sin (pronounced like the English word seen) again. That sound, amongst
other ideas in the book language, stands in the colloquial for the words
before, vingwovm, and thyead, but with a separate tone for each word, and
* «Meri soni sunt litterarum quasi corpus; accentus autem sunt ipsis loco anime.’
PREMARE’S Notitia Lingue Sinice, p. 10.
INTRODUCTION.
XXXI
written differently in the Chinese character. Now if the word ,sin, meaning
before, is pronounced in the same way as sin?, meaning thread, it, of course, is
no more the word before, but becomes the word thread, and vice versd, or if it
is pronounced ‘siz, it means ringworm, and no more thread or before, or
suppose the word is pronounced in some other tone, which does not belong
to any word with that sound, no meaning is conveyed, or, to use an illustration,
try to write English without any regard to spelling, and think that scexe will
do for seen, or vice versi. It may be imagined how confusing and ludicrous
it would be to hear a man talk about ringworm when he meant to talk about
thvead. Most ludicrous mistakes are constantly made by those who are just
learning the tones, or who will not take the trouble to learn them.
When the learner has tried to speak Chinese for some time he will still find
every now and then that something he has said falls flat on the ears of his
listener, and see by his blank or perplexed face that it conveys no idea to his
mind. In such a case the learner may think himself fortunate if some bystander,
guessing at the idea, repeats words in the right tones, when a gleam of
intelligence will replace the look of bewilderment on the face of the listener.
A criterion of success in learning the tones will be found in the decrease in
numbers of such failures in the course of time.
There are other helps it may be noted here, such as some words being
aspirated and others not, and the context also helps to the understanding
of the word, but, notwithstanding all other helps, the tone is of the utmost
importance. As PREMARE rightly says:—‘ But if the sound simply were
pronounced, no regard being had to the tone, or breathing’ (the breathing
being the aspirate) ‘it would be impossible to determine its signification ;
and indeed, it is the want of attention to this subject which occasions
Europeans, after protracted labours devoted to the acquisition of this tongue,
failing so often to be understood by the Chinese. They are learned, talented,
and industrious, and yet can only stammer, through their whole lives, while
at the same time some stupid Caffrarian, in a very short period, learns to
speak as well as the Chinese themselves.’ *
* The quotation in full in PREMARE is as follows :一 ' Exemplo sit littera 看 videre ;
sonus quem ipsi dant sine est k‘an, spiritus est asper k‘an, accentus est rectus k‘dn, et
interdum acutus k‘4n; atque haec tria, scilicet sonus, spiritus et accentus snnt omnino
necessaria. Cum vero sint aliae litterae aliud plane significantes, quae debent eodem modo
pronunciari, evidens est quod etiamsi recte dicas k‘An, tamen ex circumstantiis, hoc est, ex
materia de qua sermo est, et ex his quae pracedunt vel sequuntur, plerumque colligunt sinz
quod vox illa quam profers significat videre. Et quid igitur esset, si duntaxat dicas k‘an,
nulla habita ratione nec ad spiritum k'an, nec ad accentum k‘an atque haec est pracipua
causa cur Europzi post tot labores in lingua sinica discenda positos a sinis vix intelligantur.
Docti sunt, ingeniosi sunt, attenti sunt, et tamen per totam vitam plerique balbutiunt,
interim dum stupidus aliquis cafer (sic) post tempus sat breve tam bene loquitur quam
ipsimet sinae.’
PREMARE'S Notitia Lingue Sintce, p. 10.
XXII INTRODUCTION.
It is not learning nor talents that are a sure passport to an ability to
acquire the tones, but more an ear gifted with, or trained to, a power of
distinguishing between musical sounds, or a power of mimicry, a detertnina-
tion to succeed, accompanied with well-directed industrious efforts, which will
generally assist a man in his acquisition of the tones. His success is more
rapid and certain if he be blessed with a musical ear and a power of mimicry.
A man should not, however, give up the attempt to learn the tones from an.
idea that he is not thus blessed. It is but few men that have not some idea
of musical pitch, or the ability, if they will only try, to closely imitate what
others say; and the continual attempt to do the latter, or detect the
differences between the tones, will materially increase the ability to do both
the one and the other, just as a man who exercises the muscles of his arms
and legs, etc. in a properly directed manner is able after months of continual
practice to pull an oar in a boat, in perfect time and accord with other
rowers, ina manner which would astonish those who do not know what
training will do. So training in the tones is bound to produce good results.
The pity is that people get it into their heads that they can speak Chinese
without knowing the tones. You might almost as well expect to be able to
speak French without learning the French pronunciation, though do not be
led away by the illustration to suppose that tones are the exact equivalent
of pronunciation.
But still the question remains, What are tones? It is easy enough to say
what they are not; for instance, they are not pronunciation, emphasis, or
accent; but the difficulty consists in explaining to a European something
which he knows nothing about, something to which there is nothing akin in
his own language, or in the languages, which in the course of his education
he has learned, be they dead, Classical languages, or living modern tongues,
or, if there were, the knowledge of them has been lost.
This being the case it would, perhaps, have been as well, as Dr. WILLIAMS
says, if the Chinese name for them, shzug, had been adopted into our language
instead of using a word, such as tone, which conveys other ideas to our minds.
It is very much as if a race of mankind, say in the centre of New Guinea,
were to be discovered, who had a new sense, that is to say, a sense which
the rest of mankind were not endowed with. It would be well nigh impossi-
ble to describe this sense to the rest of mankind, who had not seen the effects
it produced and what it was, and any attempts at description would be in
many cases misleading, for those who heard the description would be inclined
to follow the illustrations out in their entirety, and thus misunderstand what
was being attempted to be explained to them.
INTRODUCTION. XXIII
Tones then may be said to be certain positions or inflections of the voice
which are used for certain words, each word having its own tone, or in many
cases two, which are used at different times. These positions into which the
voice is put for words are various in their character. The position is for
certain tones a level or sustained modulation, the difference between the
tones belonging to this class being one of musical pitch. For others it is a
rising modulation of the voice; as if when a violin bow were being drawn
across a string of the violin the finger of the player should slide from a lower
note to a higher ;—the difference between the tones belonging to this class
being in the amount of rising modulation the voice undergoes. Another
class, a diminishing, receding modulation of the voice ; the difference between
the tones comprised in this class being, as in some of the others, a high or
low one. And there is yet another class which has been described as an
evanescent modulation, the tones in this class being distinguished from each
other by the musical pitch.
If the beginner could only put himself into the same position that a child
seems to be in when learning Chinese, there doubtless would be no difficulty
at all in the tones. A European child in infancy, given equal facilities, learns
Chinese, bristling with difficulties as it appears to adults, more readily, and,
if anything, more correctly than his or her mother tongue. What is the reason
of this? The language is, as a general rule, more natural and logical in its
construction, or rather the Chinese mind is more natural and logical in its
sequence of ideas, and consequently the Chinese language is more logical in
the manner of putting ideas ; furthermore, a monosyllabic language, or at all
events with regard to Chinese, one which is to a great extent monosyllabic,
it is natural to suppose would be more readily apprehended by a child’s mind.
Besides these two great advantages there is the further advantage of tone, to
which a child is naturally inclined, and it is only by education that an infant
learns that tone is unnecessary in a European language. A Chinese child
never learns this, and, having originally, in common with its European cousin,
copied the exact tone in which it hears a word first pronounced, adheres to
this original pronunciation of the tone, assisted materially by the fact that it
hears this word pronounced in no other way, or tone, while its cousin, the
European child, while acquiring its own language, at first adheres to the
original tone in which a word has been first pronounced, and persists in this
adherence for some time, as a general rule, till it gets confused by hearing a
multiplicity of tones given to the same word and eventually finds it is useless
to battle for a language in its infant state when his superiors have long ago
decided that the language has outgrown its infantile state, and eventually
yields to the force of circumstances and, copying the example of his elders,
forgets that there is such a thing as tone at all.
XXIV INTRODUCTION.
How is it possible for a European adult to place himself in the same
position as regards tones as a child would be in? Clearly he cannot place
himself in precisely the same position, as he has already the experience of his
own and probably other languages, which at the present day are wanting in
tones, to mislead him. Let him, however, try and get as near the child’s
position in this respect, at least, as he can. Listen acutely to the tone that
his teacher pronounces a word in, repeat it after him and re-repeat it and go
on a hundred times—a thousand, if necessary, till the exact tone has been
got, and do this with every new word. More pains are necessary for the
adult than for the child, as to the child the tone is everything, while to the
adult it is nothing. Repeat the same plan with every new word learned, and
surely such infinite pains will not have been spent in vain. Being unfortu-
nately an adult the learner ought also to use his superior abilities and
previous knowledge as a vantage ground for further attainments by, for one
thing, having a formula, shall we call it? Such, for instance as, .sin ‘sin sin?
sit,, din ‘lin lin? lit), and with each new word finding from enquiry, or
better still from the dictionary, the correct tone, then trying to say it in exactly
the same tone as the same toned word in the formula, but he should not be
content with supposing that he has it correct, he should test it with his teacher
and bother him with questions as to whether he is perfectly correct or not, and
not be content with anything short of perfection. He may think it is not of
much importance and the teacher will probably think that the pupil being a
European he cannot ever learn Chinese perfectly correctly, especially if after
several attempts at a word he makes very bad shots at it, but other Europeans
have learned to speak Chinese, and amongst them have been some who have
approximated very closely to the Chinese in their tones, so close that much
of what they said might be supposed to be uttered by Chinese. If others
have attained to such an excellence, why should not he? At all events he
will not unless he tries. And it is well worth the trial, as he will know
when he has attained to this excellence.
All this trouble and painstaking when he is in his study, and on the
learning of every new word; but when he goes out to exercise his hard-
acquired knowledge he should not cramp himself by constant thoughts as to the
tone of every word in the sentence he utters, any more than he would bend
his head down and watch every step he took when walking. Speech
must come freely from his mouth, and he must not hesitate over, and
examine, every word mentally before it issues from his lips, or he will never
speak freely. A general and his officers do not minutely inspect each soldier
to see as they issue out for the attack whether their uniform and accoutre-
ments are all right ; that has to be done at drill. The learner should never
cease to drill himself in tones for many a long day after his first start.
INTRODUCTION. XXV
Methods of Describing Tones.
Different methods have been used to try and convey to the foreign mind,
unacquainted with tones, an idea of what they are. To depend only upon
these descriptions to acquire a knowledge of the tones would be but of little
use, as tones in their correctness are only to be learned from the native
pronunciation of them, but these descriptions may assist the learner, supple-
mented by hearing them pronounced, to a correct knowledge of what they are,
imperfect though such methods may be by themselves alone for conveying
a perfectly correct idea of the tones to one who is previously unacquainted
with them. One way of describing the tones has been to compare them
to the inflections of voice, which are used in certain passages properly read
and emphasised, or in speech properly inflected in its utterance. When this
explanation is given it must not be supposed that the same words, as a rule,
are capable of having different tones applied to them just as in English
words may have a different emphasis, owing simply to their position in the
sentence, or the exigencies of the case, such as the emotions the speaker
desires to give expression to, or from the inflexion of his voice 一 such are
intonation and expression—not Chinese Tones; for Chinese words are
capable of intonation of voice and emphasis, which can be thrown into the
voice without, though it may seem strange to those unacquainted with the
fact, interfering with the pztch of the tone, and this brings us to another way
in which it has been attempted to make the tonic system intelligible to the
foreigner, viz. :一 by comparing the tones to musical notes.
List of Tones.
The following is a list of the nine primary tones in Cantonese :—
Upper Series. Middle Tone. Lower Series.
LF Shéng2 P'ing HA (Chung yap). 下 平 Ha? Ping.
上 上 Shéng? Sshéng. 下 上 Ha Sshéng.
上 去 Snong* hoi? 下 去 He noi?
上 入 Shangz yap). TA Ha? yap.
‘The degree in which these two series’ (that is the upper and lower
series) ‘ vary from each other is not the same in all tones; the upper and
lower p‘ing shing being distinctly marked while there is very little perceptible
difference between the upper and lower shéng shing.’
WVILLIAMS'S Easy Lessons in Chinese, p. 49.
XXVI INTRODUCTION.
Division of the Tones.
These tones are classed together in different ways, such as those of the
Upper and Lower Series, which together make the 8 tones into which the
Cantonese, as a rule, say the words in their language are divided, and
which are the only tones appearing in the majority of dictionaries.
These eight tones are divided by the Chinese again into correct and
deflected, or 2p cp'ing and IA chak,, the first of each series belonging to
the former and the others being classed under the deflected.
These eight tones are further divided into the :—
中 <P‘ing, or Even tones.
上 shang2， or Rising tones.
于 hai’, or Receding tones.
AN yap,, ov Entering tones.
This classification is so simple that there is no need for offering any
remarks on it.
Description of the Tones.
‘The 2 9% .p'ing .shing is precisely the musical monotone, pronounced
without elevation or depression’ (at the beginning,) ‘being the natural
unconstrained expression of the voice. * * Thus in the sentences :一
Tam going to town; I hope it will not rain; You must look and see;
if the last word in each is sounded in somewhat of a dissatisfied or commanding
tone, higher than the other words, the previous part of the sentence will
naturally fall in the p‘ing ,shing. In questions, uttered in a pleasant inviting
tone, the words preceding the last naturally fallin the upper Ping shing, as :一
Will you let me seo it? Will you come too?’
But though this is the case and it commences high in the musical scale,
it has an abrupt fall which withal is so rapid that it is only of late that it
has been noticed.
‘The negative answer to such questions (spoken by the same voice)
would naturally fall into the lower p‘ing ,shing, as :一
When I asked him, ‘ Will you let me see it?’ he said, ‘ No, I'll do no such thing. '
‘ Here the different cadence of the question and reply illustrate the upper
and lower ,p‘ing shing..—Wu1..iams’s Easy Lessons in Chinese, p. 49.
INTRODUCTION. XXVII
Here again is a fall in this tone at its end which likewise has never been
noticed till lately. This fall in even tones, it may be remarked, is really a
natural fallin the voice, which occurs when an even sustained note is sounded.
When a number of such tones follow one after the other, the voice drops at
the end of the sentence, or before giving utterance to a different tone.
There is, however, a second, or Higher, Upper Even Tone into which some
words are put and which also at times shows past tense, etc. This second,
or LPS shéng? .p‘ing p‘in? yam, the P‘in Tone of the Upper Even
Tone, is found in the following words, for example :—
Sti mau, 4 cat, and $B uts'6ng， a gun.
‘It partakes of the nature of a slight shriek,’ differing not only in
musical pitch (being nearer to the 上 平 shéng? .p‘ing, Upper Even Tone,
in that respect than to the Jy 平 ar ping, Lower Even Tone), from the
other two Even Tones, but also in the manner of its pronunciation, it having
‘a certain quickness or jerkiness of pronunciation.’—Parker in Overland
China Mail.
There is nearly an octave’s difference between the two Even Tones,
the 上 . 平 shéng? .psing，Upper Even Tone, and the 下 平 ha? p'ing，
Lower Even Tone, while the Higher Upper Even Tone is more than an
octave above the Lower Even.
These Lower Even Toned words seem to give a stability and character
to the Cantonese; they are full and rich, anda European who has a full
toned voice generally speaks Cantonese better than one with a weak piping
voice, at all events Cantonese from his lips sounds better than from those of
the other man.
There is no doubt this tone, the bP ee shéng? cp'ing Po” yan,
the P‘in Tone of the Even Tone, does exist, and the beginner will do well
to keep his ears open for it, though, strange to say, to the average European
ear it is so subtle as not to be distinguished, obtuse in this sense as most
Europeans have become from speaking a language in which tone is of no
account. And here consists the fallacy of learning Chinese by simply learning
what the tones of a word are, that is to say, learning that a certain word is
in the 上 =P shéng” <p‘ing, or Upper Even Tone, for example, instead of
first learning to pronounce the word properly, and then bracing yourself up
to that pronunciation by comparing it with other words in that same tone
and then finally fixing in your memory that it belongs to that tone, the
XXVIII INTRODUCTION.
ke shéng* -p‘ing, Upper Even Tone; for, supposing you learn first that it
belongs to this tone class instead of making a point of pronouncing it
properly first, you run away at once with the idea that it is a he shéng”
<P‘ing, Upper Even Tone, and it is possible that it isa bPee shéng*
Ping pin’ yam, the P‘in Tone of the Upper Even Tone. If you have a good
ear and good powers of mimicry, great points of advantage in learning
Chinese, you run a good chance of learning the word in the right tone; then
it is possible you may detect the difference on coming to compare it with
other words that are really in the bP shéng* ;p‘ing, Upper Even Tone.
At all events, keep your ear open for these distinctions between the 上 平
shéng* .p‘ing, Upper Even, and bLPoes shéng? .pting pin’ yam, the
P‘in Tone of the Upper Even Tone, for no dictionary yet published gives all
the words, which should be in the bLPReEe shéng? <P‘ing pin’ yam, the
Pin Tone of the Upper Even Tone, in that Tone. Dr. Errex puts a few of
them into his dictionary. Do not consider such distinctions hypercritical, or
a waste of time. The disposition to do so has made some learned Sinologues
commit such egregious errors as to entirely ignore a well marked Tone, the
HA chung yap, the Medial Entering Tone, of which we shall speak
presently. These distinctions do exist, subtle as they may seem to you, and
while not distressing yourself with them too much, at the same time try to
train your ear to distinguish them. There is no reason why you should
not try to speak Chinese properly, and if you make the effort you may
find that you will succeed better than you thought at first, and it is possible
that eventually you may be able, after a sufficient lengthened course of
study, to distinguish some more of these subtle distinctions which are still
believed to be lurking about in Cantonese, but which have not yet been
brought to book, more’s the pity.
‘The ae shong? Shing,’ (Rising Tone,) ‘is a rising inflection of the
voice ending higher than it began, such as is heard in the direct question,
pronounced in somewhat of a high, shrill tone ;—‘‘it loudly calls, vehement,
ardent, stvong.” It is also heard in exclamatory words, as, ah! Can it be !
The last word of the preceding sentences are in the he shong2 _shing,’
: ‘ 《
(Rising Tone), 一 WILLIAMS'S Easy Lessons in Chinese, p. 50.
With regard to the difference between the 上 上 shang? ‘shéng, Upper
Rising Tone, and 下 上 ha? Sshong, Lower Rising Tone, the following state-
ment will give an idea:—‘the Upper Rising Tone gradually ascends,
altering its pitch about half a tone while the syllable is being uttered with
INTRODUCTION， XXIX
a steadily waxing intensity of effort, * * the Lower Rising Tone starts
from a lower pitch, does not ascend so high as the other and suddenly
breaks off with a sort of jerk or circumflex. —EITEL’s Chinese Dictionary in
the Cantonese Dialect, Introduction, p. xxix.
What has been called the Third Rising Tone really consists of five or more
different tones. Every word that is used in these tones belongs originally to
another tone, being used in this other tone as well. Nearly all the tones
contribute words which are occasionally, or often, as the case may be,
used in Rising Tones. The words most generally put into these tones
are Nouns, ‘familiar words in the Lower Departing Tone (or 下 去 ha?
hii’). It often happens also that words in the Lower Even Tone, or 下 平
ha? .p'ing，are put into these Rising Tones. Occasionally words in the
Upper Departing Tone, or 上 去 shéng* héi are likewise put into these
Tones. Words in the two Rising Tones, he shéng? Shing, are put
into these Tones, as well, but not quite as often.” The Upper Even Tone,
Es shéng? .p'ing， however, never contributes words to these
Rising Tones for the very good reason that this tone has a variant tone
which is not a Rising Tone, viz., the Higher Upper Even Tone.
It must be remembered that in reading this changing from the other
tones into these Rising Tones never happens, it is only in conversation.
It is a little misleading to say that these Rising Tones are adopted when a
word ends a sentence. They do undoubtedly end a sentence at times.
The Rising Tones are used when the word stands alone, but when it
is used in combination it often takes its original tone, as :一 渡 td°* (original
tone to”) but when used with 般 .shin, a boat, it reverts to its original tone,
as TE A to? <shiin, @ passage boat.
The Rising Tones, or rather the variants, are also used as a sign of
past time—of an action being accomplished, as :一
时 1B M4 Kia? “kon dai, tell him to come. ge wy aa 人 lok he has come.
1B Led ie NES Sai zlai* lo? cme He has come, has he? me 17-4 zlai* lok, yes.
But rules for the use of these, and the other variant tones are given
more fully further on.
‘The $e hor Shing, Departing Tone, is a prolonged tone, sac
ing while it is uttered, just as a diminuendo, or an inverted swell, does in
music, and sounded somewhat gruffly. The Chinese say that it is ‘clear,
XXX INTRODUCTION.
distinct, its dull, low path is long;” and they call it the departing tone,
because it goes away like flowing water never to return. It is the converse
of the 上 = shéng? shing, ending lower than it began. The 下 去 ha how,
Lower Departing Tone, is nearer a monotone, not so gruff as the 上 去
shéng? héii’, Upper Departing Tone. The drawling tone of repressed
discontent, as when one calls, but is still afraid of offending and ekes out
the sound, may perhaps illustrate this tone, 一 VWVILLIAMS'S Easy Lessons in
Chinese, p. 50.
There is no difficulty in knowing what words belong to the fourth
Tone Class, as all words that end in k, p, and t belong to it. ‘They
further differ from all the other tones by a peculiar abruptness of enuncia-
tion. —EITEL’s Chinese Dtctionary in the Cantonese Dialect, Introduction,
p. xxix, There are three well defined tones belonging to this class, the 上
shéng’, 中 chung, and 下 ha2, Upper, Middle, and Lower, 人 yap,, or
Entering Tones. There is also some assistance to be derived from the fact
that most of the words having long vowels belong to the 中 人 chung yap,,
Middle Entering Tone. The others, as well as some words with long vowels,
belong to the 七 人 shéng? yap,, Upper Entering Tone, or 下 入 ha? yap,,
Lower Entering Tone. 7
‘The correct application of the tones to every word in speaking or
reading is the principal difficulty with which the beginner has to contend.
In English they are all heard in conversation every day, according to the
different humours of people or their peculiar mode of enunciation; but in
that language, tones of words never affect the meaning of the speaker,
except so far as they indicate his feelings; and, moreover, they are applied
to sentences rather than to isolated words. In Chinese, on the contrary,
the tones are applied to every word, and have nothing to do either with
accent or emphasis ; in asking or answering, entreating or refusing, railing
or flattering, soothing or recriminating, they remain ever the same. The
unlettered native knows almost nothing of the learned distinctions into
tones, but he attends to them closely himself, and detects a mispronuncia-
tion as soon as the learned man, while he is much less likely to catch a
foreigner’s meaning.’
The Variant Tones.
It is as well to acknowledge at once that there are nine primary tones
in Cantonese, and only nine in the book language; and that there are,
besides these, nine secondary tones as well, but not in the book language.
INTRODUCTION. XXXI
However, see below as to how these latter nine may be simplified in
practice.
To those who may still persist in ignoring the number of these tones
it may be well to quote Mr. Parker (China Review, Vol. 8, p. 366), whose
word is law on the matter of Chinese tones. He says: ‘Besides the nine
regular Cantonese tones, there are, in short, nine corresponding variable
tones.’ In fact, each of the nine tones has a tone into which it is changed
sometimes well-nigh permanently in conversation, at other times always
when used in certain connections, or to convey certain meanings.
Though, however, each of the nine tones has a variant tone, yet their
classification is apparently capable of simplification, as the variant of the
upper retiring tone (Mr. Cuan’s middle retiring) and of the middle entering
tone are the same; again, that of the upper rising is nearly the same, the
voice lingering longer, however, on the tone at the end. Once more one
tone serves equally well as the variant of the lower retiring and the lower
entering tones; this tone one would feel inclined to describe as smooth
in its progress upwards. Again the variant for the lower rising is almost
similar to it, but its distinctive feature lies in more emphasis being thrown
into its pronunciation, especially in its inception and first rising; for the
voice seems to seize on it with avidity, lingering on it, and a crescendo
effect comes in, in its middle course, dying away towards its end. Then
though the variant of the upper even and the upper entering tone are very
much alike, there is a difference between them, the latter is lengthened in
its pronunciation and not abrupt as the former, the voice lingers on it
and gives emphasis to it with almost, if not quite, a crescendo effect. Of
all these variants, the one which appeals most to the learner is the variant
of the lower even: it is so marked and distinctive in its character that it has
hitherto well nigh monopolised the attention and taken the other variant
rising tones under its own name, or, at all events, the distinction between
these five, or more, rising variant tones has not been pointed out, or clearly
defined, and they have all been considered by many as one and the same
tone. It will be noticed that this has a distinct fall and a long rise, in
fact, being the most prolonged of any of the rising tones, and much emphasis
is thrown into the voice on its recovery from the fall, increasing in its
volume as it rises into a good crescendo and dying away at the end again.
It is a tone that is bound to force itself on the attention of the hearer who
has the slightest acuteness of ear for tones.
From the above it will be seen that what has been described previously
asthe Third Rising Tone is properly divisible into at least, ifnot possibly more,
five separate Rising Tones, all of which, if the learner wishes to speak
XXXII INTRODUCTION.
Cantonese perfectly, should be learned from a good teacher, who speaks
correct Cantonese.
The Higher Upper Even Tone has already been described.
The variant tone of the EA shong? yap, Upper Entering Tone is a
prolongation of that tone.
a
As an instance of the use of these variant tones in forming new words or
shades of meaning the word 大 tat’, great, may be called attentionto. Tai?
in the Lower Retiring means big, large, great, ¢. g.:—
(1) 一 个 大 人 yat, ko” tai? cyan, a big man, a grown up person,
also is a title for high officials such as Your, or His,
g
Excellency, Your, or His, Honour, etc., etc.).
(2) Tar, ié.,in the Variant Rising Tone of the Lower Retiring
as in the phrase J Fe Al Mh] ARR Snes ta?* ko’ ‘ko <shi, when
you have grown up. Here the variant tone shows the growing
up being attained or looked forward to. Without its use, when that
meaning was to be conveyed, the phrase would fall flat and tame.
(3) ovat in the Higher Upper Even Tone as in the phrase why AN
个 tik, kom’ tai ko”, a tiny mite, Ruby me (iH on aE Bp Snes tik,
kdm’ taf ko’ ‘ko chan? shi, when you were a little mite of a child.
Again take Fig wa’, to speak, and #% wae patois, dialect, language ; the
one in the Lower Retiring Tone; the other in the Variant Tone of the Lower
Retiring.
As another instance of the differentiation produced by the use of these
variant tones, take the word Honam, the name given to the suburb of Canton
situated on the south side of the river. This word as applied to the locality
is always in its original tones, but the last syllable is put into the variant
when the steamer so-called is mentioned. This is no fancy, but established
usage, though it happens that, very rarely, the original tones are used for the
steamer.
These are only a few instances of the innumerable examples of the
change of meaning and tense shown by the use of these variant tones.
a
INTRODUCTION. XXXIII
An interesting set of rules and examples of the use of these variant
tones was published in the ‘ China Review,’ Vol. XXIV., pp. 209-226, by
Mr. Cu‘au Cuan SENE, with Prefatory Remarks by the present author.
It may be laid down—
(rt) That verbs in the Perfect Tense take variant tones when words
such as Be (hia or TRE. ‘cho are not used to convey the idea of past
time.
(2) That ‘the Present Participles of Intransitive Verbs of attitude or
appearance’ take variant tones.
(3) When the word — with the meaning of one or a is used between
two words, generally verbs, as, for example, in phrases like ‘ ‘bite a
bite” out of it,’ then the — yat, (shortened in Chinese into ,4) is in
the Higher Upper Even Tone, and when, as is often the case, the a is
dropped out, the second word takes the variant which belongs to its
original tone.
(4) After 3 “kéi, how, oy kém’, so, and the phrases vanes ‘mo
Ga ANG :
kéi and 1 fA cm haf kéi, not very, words representing
dimensions or qualities take a variant tone often.
(5) Words duplicated for emphasis—not nouns, but generally
adverbs—take a variant tone for the first of these double words.
(6) But when some adjectives and adverbs are duplicated to
minimise the sense, the last word of the two takes a variant tone,
and these ‘are generally followed’ by the word ne téi?.
(7) Adverbs formed by the duplication of a word take a variant tone
in the latter of the two words.
(8) The common names of things or places and of occupations of
individuals and relationships commonly used take a variant tone.
If a single character, the character takes it; but if the name, etc., is
formed of two or more characters, only the last character takes
the variant.
(9) The names of steamers in most cases take a variant tone in the
last character of their names when these characters are originally in
the Upper or Lower Even, or Upper Retiring Tone, but not when
in the Upper Rising or Upper Entering Tones.
XXXIV INTRODUCTION.
(10) Proper names of persons and places take a variant in the last
character often; but it is often more respectful to persons to use
the original tones.
(x1) Certain words which do not come under the above rules are
always in a variant tone in the colloquial, as 都 vto， nh otis
(12) Many of the Upper Even Tone Finals can be used either in that
tone or in the Higher Upper Even (variant) as the sense to be
conveyed by them demands. Be somewhat sparing of putting
finals into a variant in the middle of a series of sentences unless the
sense really demands it.
(13) As to whether certain words shall go into a variant tone depends
often, unless the word is one which must be in a variant, on
euphony, or the rhythmic flow of the sentence.
Marks to designate the Tones.
It must be remembered that Chinese books are not marked with the
tones; an educated native knows the right tones of the words as they occur
in the books. It is only when a word is in a tone which is not the common
tone of the word that it is marked, and the method by which this is done
is to make a little circle at one of the four corners of the character. Each
corner has its appropriate tones assigned to it. The left hand lower corner
being appropriated to the 平 cp'ing, or ev.n tones, the left hand upper to
the 上 shong’, or rising tones, the right hand upper to the 去 hoi’, or
receding tones, and the right hand lower corner to the A\ yap,, or entering
tones. These are the only signs that the Chinese use, and this only when it
is absolutely necessary that they should be used. It will be seen that there
is no distinction in the native signs employed between the different tones
which belong to the same class, that is to say a bh shéng* <p‘ing, Upper
Even, and 下 平 ha? <P‘ing, Lower Even, are both represented by the
same tonal mark. No difficulty, however, arises from this paucity of tone
marks, as far as the Chinese are themselves concerned, for, as has been
already stated, these tonic marks are but seldom used, only occurring a
few times, if as often as that, in the course of as many pages; and,
furthermore, if those few words are occasionally used in another tone,
as a rule it is but one other tone that they are used in, therefore no ambi- \
guity is likely to arise. The case is, however, very different when we come
to deal with foreigners, such as Europeans, learning the Chinese language ;
for here we have those who do not know by conversational practice from
infancy upwards, and from an educational course extending over many years
the correct tones for each word; and yet again as an additional reason, when a
foreigner desires to write out the sounds of the Chinese words, transliterating
INTRODUCTION. XXXKV
them into his own alphabet, as he best can, he has a number of Chinese
words, groups of which are represented by the same spelling in a foreign
language, so many words belonging to each group that the foreigner is
confused, more especially at the beginning of his course of study, as to which
Chinese word a combination of English letters is intended to represent.
The context will show what many of the words so spelled represent, but in
some cases this requires thought, and it is, therefore, taking the whole subject
into consideration, best that each word so written should be accompanied by
a tonal mark, which shall represent, accurately, intelligibly, and in a manner
easily to be apprehended, the tone to which the word belongs. The above
remarks will show the reasons for books prepared for those who wish to
learn Chinese bristling with tonic marks, and the man who wishes to learn
Chinese thoroughly and properly will find that in the long run he gets on
better with such a book, and makes more real progress than he does with
another, though the other may be more useful, if rightly used, to the tourist or
to the man who has not the time nor the inclination to learn more than a
smattering of Chinese.
We come now to the methods used by foreigners to represent the tones.
Some have endeavoured to show tones by ‘ marking the vowels with different
accents.’ This is a confusing method, except to those intimately acquainted
with it, as it is the most natural course to utilise such marks to represent
the value of the vowels, as is done in our English dictionaries, and use
extraordinary signs to represent what is an extraordinary incident of words—
to use signs not used by us in English to represent tones which are unknown
to us in English,—and moreover such a method of representing the tones
has not been employed by foreigners writing books in Cantonese till quite
recently, and it is better to stick to the established usage when that established
usage is the better plan. The effect of using the contrary plan is that
an awkward arrangement is arriveil at of marking over the vowels their
quantities or powers as well as the tone of the word, or else nearly all
‘ prosodical marks affecting the vowels’ have to be left out and the next step
arrived at is to leave out the tonic marks entirely—a process of evolution, or
rather of retrogression, eminently unsatisfactory. Another objection is
that it would lead beginners to suppose that the tone was connected
with the vowel. The vowel no doubt has sometimes something to do with
the tone, but not to such an extent as one would naturally infer from such
a method of distinguishing the tones.
Another method is that of marking the tones by figures. We have
already said that, though pretty well adapted for Pekingese with its paucity
of tones, it would be inconvenient for Cantonese with its eleven or
more tones.
XXXVI INTRODUCTION.
Marks of apostrophy have also been used in some of the dialects, but it
will be readily seen that there is not sufficient material to use for such a
purpose.
In the Hakka, as written by the German missionaries, there is also
another system employed, which consists in putting acute and grave accents
at different corners of the words, in some cases with a straight short dash
underneath the accent as well. Again in Hakka the tones are but few in
number, and such arrangements are more easily used than they would be
in Cantonese, besides which these marks have never been used in
Cantonese, and there is no type available even supposing it were a good plan
for Cantonese.
There is yet again another method, which has been employed in
Cantonese by Dr. CHALMERS, which consists of a combination of one of the
above modes with a new plan of using different type, and a leaving out of the
tonic marks when the word ends in those consonants which show that it
belongs to a certain tone class. This method has not been adopted by
anyone else. Itisno doubt very convenient considered froma typographical
point of view, but it seems a more regular and systematic way to give every
word its tonic mark.
And lastly there is the modification of the native method of representing
the tones, which was first used in BRIDGMAN'S Chrestomathy, and has
continued to be used up to the present day by nearly all who have written
books dealing with the Cantonese dialect, amongst whom may be men-
tioned Wittiams, LosscuiepD, Kerr, and Eirer. It is the system adopted
in this book. This method has several advantages over the others. All the
other methods are strange and unknown to the Chinese. The learner
would, in using the others, require to tell his teacher what tone such and
such things were meant to represent, and such telling would be of little use
with regard to some of the marks that are used in some of the modes
employed to represent the tones in Chinese. Of course in the majority of
cases the teacher can tell the tone from the character, but in some cases it is
well that the teacher should be able to see himself how the tone is marked.
In this system likewise every word is marked with its tone, and it
occasionally happens that some of the words which by Dr. CHALMERS' system
are left unmarked go in Colloquial into a rising, variant tone. These marks
in this method are as applicable to the Chinese character as to the English
spelled word, which represents that character, but figures and accents cannot
well be printed along with the Chinese characters. This method is applicable
to any dialect in China, and it is a thousand pities that, when such an
admirable system is in use, it has not been availed of by foreigners for all the
Chinese languages, which have been treated of in books instead of different
INTRODUCTION， XXXVII
systems being in use for different so-called dialects, thus increasing the
difficulty of learning them when the difficulties are sufficiently great without
being added to. It unfortunately even happens that in some dialects even
more than one system is in use.
This system as has already been stated is an adaptation of the native
system, the semi-circle being used for the upper series of tones, and the
semi-circle with a short dash underneath it to represent the lower series, as,
for example :—
b> shéng? cp'ing， Upper Even, as — sin. “Pe ha? cP'ing, Lower Even, as :—(/in.
上 上 shéng? Sshéng, Upper Rising, as sin PE ha? Sshéng, Lower Rising, as :—‘Iin.
上 去 shéng? héii’, Upper Retreating, as:—sin? 下 去 ha hai’, Lower Retreating, as lin.
ee) : ls a : ae
上 入 shang yapy, Upper Entering, as —pit,, 人 ha yap), Lower Entering, as: Nity.
There now remain the other tones to be dealt with, viz. :一 the be
iz 7 shéng? <P‘ing pin’ yam, the HA chung yap, Medial Departing
Tone, and the variant tones. The bP shéng* <P‘ing pin’ yam, Upper
Even P‘in Tone, is represented by Parker and EITEL by a circle in the 平
<P‘ing position as nai, being an adoption of a Siamese tone mark, and it is
the plan likewise adopted in this book.
The same plan is likewise used for the HA chung yap,, Medial
Departing Tone, viz.:—a circle, but of course at the A\ yap, position,
as :—pok,,.
There now remain the Rising Tones. These have generally been
represented by their own tone marks reversed, and an asterisk placed at the
right hand upper corner of the word.
In this book this asterisk is employed, as it is useful in showing that the
word is in a different tone in the colloquial from what it is in the book
language. It is unsatisfactory to group all these Variant Rising Tones
together. It is better that the Tonic Mark should show distinctly the tone of
the word, and the asterisk be reserved alone to show that the tone is a
different one to the original tone, and not to show what the tone is.
To recapitulate, the following method has been used to represent the variant
tones :一 The Higher Upper Even Tone, the 上 平 侍 音 shéng? <P‘ng pin’
yam, has already been represented by other writers by a circle at the lower
left hand corner of the word, as sin. It is also the sign used in this book.
The majority of the other tones are represented in this book by the turning
of the usual tone sign upside down as shown in the page set aside for ‘ Tonic
XXXVIII INTRODUCTION，
Marks and Abbreviations used in’this Book.’ The only exception besides
that of the Higher Upper Even tone, already mentioned, are the variants
of the Middle Entering Tone (the 中 NEF chung yap, pin’ yam),
of the Upper Rising, and the Upper Retiring. In the case of the variant
of the Middle Entering, in addition to the small circle, the sign of the ordinary
chung yap,, a figure one is added (see page mentioned above). As regards
the other two variants, the Upper Rising one and the Upper Retiring, the
sign which was formerly used for the so-called third rising tone is employed,
placed at the proper corners of the words. The page mentioned above will
make this plain.
Tonic Exercises.
Go through the following Tonic Exercises every day regularly for three
months at least.
Let your teacher read each set to you and then repeat them after him.
He will read the first line in the First Series to you and then the first line in
the Second Series. The meanings of the words are simply given to satisfy any
laudable curiosity the learner may have as to the meanings of the words he
is repeating so often. In this way it often happens that the meaning of many
words are learned without the learner actually setting himself down with the
express object of learning them.
This drudgery must be gone through most conscientiously and thoroughly,
not considering that you have done your duty until you have gone through
each set dozens or scores of times every day; for these voice and ear
exercises are as important as finger exercises are to the learner on the piano.
‘ It cannot, however, be too strongly impressed upon learners from the
outset that both aspirates and tones are of the utmost importance to one who
would learn to speak Chinese intelligibly, * *“ * | %* %H # & % %
The distinction of tones in Chinese often appears to beginners to
make the acquisition of the spoken language almost hopelessly difficult, but
this difficulty, like many others, is found to yield to persevering effort, and
by constantly reading aloud after a teacher, the ear becomes familiar with
the difference in the tones of the words pronounced. At the same time it is
not desirable to trust to the ear alone in trying to remember what is the
tone of a particular word. A Chinese child will unconsciously acquire the
right tones in speaking, and use them without any effort of memory all
through life in the same way a foreign child learns and uses the correct tones ;
but, with the rarest possible exceptions, foreign adults will find it necessary
to learn what the proper tone of each character is, together with its sound
and meaning. Both tones and aspirates are chiefly important in the spoken
INTRODUCTION. XXXIX
language, but even in studying the written language it is necessary to notice
that a character often has two sounds, one aspirated and the other
unaspirated, or one of one tone and another of another, and its shade of
meaning varies accordingly ; thus, the word 中 “ the middle ”is differently
pronounced when it means ‘“ to hit the centre.” "—Foster’s Elementary Lessons
in Chinese.
XL INTRODUCTION.
First Series, Comprising the Upper Tones.
Shéng* 1
& |
Shéng? Shing? Shin8 cChung | Meaning of the Words.
cp ing、 *Shong hoi iB |
12 3 4
I. “Sin ‘Sin Sin’? Sit Before, moss, thread, bits.
2. ae (Wai ‘Wai Wai’ Dignity, great, awe.
3. ex sa KEI “Ker Ke? Several, to record, to remember.
4- ae HE ， Chi ‘Chi Chi? Chit, All, master, to publish, stupid.
5. {G2 coat ‘Sau Sai? Adorn, venerable man, elegant.
6. ieee “Tung ‘Tung Tung” Tuk, East, to rule cold, real.
7: 黄 Ble ¢ ving ‘Ying Ying? vik, Excellent, shadow, answer, beneficial.
8. Gels (Pan ‘Pan Pan? Pat, Guest, petition, Imperial concubine, ended.
9. be BAe Ching ‘Chong Ching? Chék, | To draw out, palm of the hand, curtain, to order.
Io. fal aE 角 Kong “Kong Kong’ Kok | Strong, to speak, to descend, horn.
II. 朝 沼 照 Chia ‘Chia Chit? Morning, pool, to illumine
12. 波 十 故 (Kwa “Kwa Kwa? Alone, ancient, old.
13 WUE, vin ‘Yin Yin? yiit, | Drake, yielding, animosity, curved.
14 +e EST (Kai “Kai Kar? All, to open, firm or uncorrupted.
15 HG Se fil ， Tang “Tang Tang’ Tak, Ascend, sort, stool, virtue.
16, 师 史 四 <Sz “Sz 82" Master, history, four.
17, Gg ek—. Kam ‘Kam Kam’ Kap, | Metal, embroidery, prohibit, hasty.
18 BE LNA (Nat “Kaa Kaw’ Intercourse, to strangle, to teach.
19. 栽 宰 载 Tsofi “Tsoi Tsoi To plant, to rule, to contain.
20. BERS ioe sou “Séi Sai? Although, marrow, year.
21 FES FY ， Kim ‘Kim Kim? Kip, | Joined, to examine, sword, to rob,
22 VELA E AL : Tsun “Tsun Tsun? Tsut, | A ford, presents, to enter, soldiers.
23. FLRE (Fo ‘Fo Fo” Order or sort, fire, cargo.
24. SAR EEEA Kémm “Kam Kam’ IAD To bind, to diminish, mirror, armour.
25. AWE 3 (Fan ‘Fan Fan Fat, | To fly, to rebel, to float, to issue,
26. RE TIRE . Ka ‘ka Ka’ Kak Family, false, to marry (a husband), gradation.
27. Bee TA « Kwan “Kwan Kwan? Kwat, | Officer, tube, to connect, to inclose.
28. AS} Ham Pai ‘Fai Far’ Headmost, a bribe, to teach.
29. ESTEE . Che ‘Che Che’ Chek | Screen, this, sugar-cane, a classifier
39. Fite i>] (Kon “Kon Kon? Kot, A shield, to pursue, business, to cut.
3I. Herne Kom “Kom Kom? Kop, Sweet, daring, purple, a clam.
32. ] In these two orders no words occur in
ae. r this series
INTRODUCTION， XLI
Second Series, comprising the Lower Tones.
I2 3 He ae se cai Meaning of the Words.
<P'ing. “shéng. héi yap,
Ts SH BS 列 <Lin <Lin Lin2 Lit, To unite, gem, chain, to separate.
i KRG Mai SMai Mai : To deceive, rice, cuff of the sleeve.
3. ‘HE A: ne Yi {yi ye? Yit, Right, deliberate, the second, hot.
4 angst Bat OF cv va vie Yiity As, to converse, to lodge, the moon.
5: 22 BI lati aa = Law? To detain, willow, base or mean.
6: 4S FAG cyung <SYung Yung? Yuk, Manner, brave, use, to wish.
7 Beh? JJ <Ling “Ling Ling? Lik, Spiritual, the neck, to order, strength.
号 BCR «Man -Man Man? Mat, Letters, celerity, to ask, do not.
9- Bp pega Yong Sy6ng Yong? Yok, Light, to look up, pattern, physic.
Be: -E4EHE i Wong ”Wong Wong? Wok, King, to go, abundance, a pan.
aT HRY 料 Lia Lit Lia? A window, finished, to esti:nate.
12. $E-EEIS Ma {Mo Mo? Without, mother, business
13. 元 软 Yin fyan Yiin2 Yat, Origin, flexible, desire, moon.
1 Heke aS Hai SHai = Ha? Shoes, crab, lazy.
15: WA Th . «Mang “Mang Mang? Mak, To swear, fierce, first, ink.
16. mV) 自 cTS'z STs'z Tsz* Sentence, like, self.
ay DA HEE A . Yam ‘Yam Yam? Yap, To chant, lappet, to sustain, enter.
1B, PwMBe cMaa SMa Mai? Rushes, luxuriant, countenance.
19: 训 殖 代 (Toi SToi Toi? Terrace, dangerous, instead of.
205 fae Gules Se cxYim ‘Yim Yim? Yip, Severe, to dye, to examine, occupation.
21 丛 SNe (Lun SLun Lun? Lut, Relation, egg, discourse, law.
22. BR 里 类 Loi SLoi Loi? Thunder, to involve, species.
23. Rese A <Ngo ‘Ngo Ngo Ngok, | Goose,lor we,tosleep,certain mountains.
24. Be Pee (Lam SLam Lam? Lap, Blue, to look, rope, wax.
25. Ba PR (Lan ‘Lan Lan? Lat, Fading, lazy, broken, pungent.
26. FF HEE ZA Nga ‘Nga Nga? Ngak, Teeth, elegant, to receive, forehead.
27: 门 ria) a «Man ‘Maan Min? Mat, Door, full, grief, the end.
28. aa (Mai SMai Mai? Plum, each, obscure.
295 PET 计 射 石 . She ‘She She? Shek, | Snake, local deities, to shoot, stone.
3°. ge aA TE ¢Hon ‘Hon Hon? Hot, Cold, drought, pencil, hempen cloth.
3t. By A ¢Hom ‘Hom Hom? Hop, To endure, jaws, indignation, to unite.
32. BSP (Pang “P'ang Ngéng? Ngak, Abundant, a mace, stiff, forehead.
33- Ae Ng ‘Ng Ng? My or our, five, to perceive.
XLIT
INTRODUCTION.
7
Tonic Exercise in the 再 (Pring
Tones.
Shang2 Pi ing 人 in Yam, Shéng?
a Pi ce, and Ha? Pi ing
Meaning of the Words.
Be Tb. Ch'ong .Ch'ong ,Ch‘ong
2. Ae HES EB Hong Hong Yong
3 RS x “Nung Hung <Nung
4 (EM (Ka Ka
5. 部 高 虹 Ko Ko Ho
6. Kea saltpe Lian (Lan (Lan
7 GBB SP Maa Mat (Maa
8 ay Saban Shi (Shi cShf
9 星 猩 形 uSing Sing cYing
10. TTT ke oreng' cTeng+ cT ing
II. ia ol enst Tieng} Ting
12. TA oTing Ting (Ting
13. ITT WP 。 Ting (Ting 。 cT'ing
14. pe a f=) 当 沉 Tong 。 Tong <T'ong
15. Se . Tsin _ sin cTsin
16. Fy 青 请 刑 。 Ts'ing (isi ing cYing
17. KEE 。 Ts‘ong is ong; cTs' ong
18. Saas 。 Ts‘ong cs ong 。 (Ts ong
19. A ial 。 Tsz Tee < 工 'SZz
20. 意 依 儿 。 Yi vi ai
21 (E30 “ving Ying Ying
22. rem KE} ot ins ving Ying
Other examples might be given, but
learner a knowledge of these tones.
Tetter’ to wound, bed.
Clove’, a village, to splash.
To scorch, empty, to cultivate the ground.
False}, to add.
A plaster4, high, an oyster.
A market, to crawl, to prevent.
A cat, to squat down, reeds
A hymn, a corpse, a spoon.
A star, an ape, form.
A tetter sore’, a nail, a court.
A court, to hear, a road-side inn
Clove”, alone, to cease.
Jingling, a nail, handsome.
A hawker's hand-gong®, proper, a hall.
Note-paper’, to fry, a surname.
The colour of nature, pure, legal punishments.
A hold, a granary, to store away
A gan, a spear, a wall.
Postage®, wealth, spring sacrifice
Will3, depend on, an infant.
The hawk, superior, to receive a guest.
A salad, suitable, according to.
these will be sufficient for giving the
x1. In KIPVIE “fo oteng ,ch’ong, tetter.
2. In 丁香 uting hong, cloves.
3. Asin the phrase FFE cha’ Ka mae This phrase is also pronounced cha? “kA y 他 ，
and also cha’ “ka Pie
4 In ABs pak, lap, uko， a certain kind of plaster.
5. In 管 fia wan uteng， a court, and in other connections.
6. In 437 Z oting tons, a hawker’s hand-gong.
7. In several phrases, the names of different kinds of paper.
Bo . .
8. In 48 # sun? ctsz， postage, and in other connections.
INTRODUCTION，
Tonic Exercise in the 上 shong: Tones.
XLIII
i 2 Sng? Ha | Meaning of the Words.
*shéng. >*shong |
I. fy BE faa SLaa | To fight, a bamboo hamper.
2. Bar “Fan “Fan Flour of any grain, anger.
3. aA BH ‘Long SLong | To inquire, lustrous.
4. 虎 如 ‘Fa Sra A tiger, lady.
5 i “Hai SHas | To be at, a crab.
6. goa aN “Kai Si | To explain, to pass anything along.
7. Ki Kei Stary Annals, to stand.
8. ES “kia “Khia Straight, to bale water.
9. 58.16 ‘Kou *K'di | To elevate, he or she.
10. Abe “Kwa SN& Widow, used to denote the female.
II BR Kwo SNgo Fruit, I.
2. ene ‘Lai Stat To turn, propriety.
13 hate “Lam ‘Lam Olive, to grasp
14 CH ‘La “Lo \ fellow, old.
15. 面 两 ‘Léng SLéng Tael, two
16. 2358 Or {Poi _ Foggy. dangerous.
17. EAR ‘Pan “Ngan | To petition, eye
18 {SA FA “Pei SLéi | To give, a mile.
19. KRY “Pia SLia To manifest, finished.
20 保 想 “pe Spe To protect, to carry in the arms
ox. PEPE :Shai Sshai To use, to lick.
22 AD Sis “Tai ST ai | Bad, rudder.
23. BE “Tim ‘Lim ‘A dot, to harvest.
24 TARE cTing £Ting Summit, to pull up
25 fF “Tsai STs‘ai | Son, a mullet.
26. Fv “Tsz {512 A son, similar.
27. +a Wan SWwan To look for, correct.
28, BR Wan =Main A bowl, full.
29. 隐 BI ‘Yan {Van Small, to entice.
30. MAR “van Lyan Rotten wood, to have
31. 4% SYi SYi To rely on, ear.
32. He Ze Vim {vim Toclose, to dye.
33. WK PE “Yia Syig Shortlived, to give trouble.
i, PRA ‘yang feng To shake (as a cloth), to rear.
35. aA ‘vung Svung Bubbling, brave.
36. Wise “Vin van Yielding, distant
XLIV
INTRODUCTION.
The list of yap tones should be studied in the same way as the preceding Exercise.
Tonic Exercise in the Three A Yap, Tones.
a 22
2 ee cohung bia | Meaning of the Words.
Yap) YAP). YAP).
|
I. HePane Ak, Ak. Ngak, ' To grasp, a bangle, contrary to.
2. YS FE [ie Ap, Ap. Hap, ; To soak, a duck, a straight passage.
3 JUSS AY At, At, Hat, ! To thrust in, to press down, the kernel of fruits.
4 HE eo Chak, Chak Chak ' A small boat, to reprove, a mansion.
5 PA Ril Chap, Chip Chap, To pick up, to write out, a barrier.
6. Eb FL Chat, Chat Chat To ascend, a bundle, to stop up the mouth of.
7. GRAS Chik, Chek + Chik To govern, one of a pair, straightforward.
8 V5 tie Chuk, Chuk Chuk | Bamboo, to seize, turbid.
9. Bi HF Fat, Fat, Fat, To dip up, law, to punish.
10. FAR Kap, Kap, Hasty, coat of mail, and.
ta PPT 1. Kwat, Kwat Kwat ' Bone, to scrape, to dig.
2 SAMA vax, Lak, Lak, —|_ To bind, the ribs, the ribs.
13. Ads Fi he Lap, Lap, Lap, A hamper, to lump, wax.
14. ney 律 Lut, Lit Lut, Out of order, infirm, a statute.
15. 43, IKE Mat, Mat Mat, | What? to wipe, stockings.
a A ANP 5. Mit Yit Yit, | To break off, to choke, the judge or ruler ofacity.
17 Hy aNd Nat, Nat, Nat, | Joyful, to smooth, a dash to the right in writing.
- Wh wen Ngap, Ngap Ngap, _ To talk at random, to tuck in, to beckon.
Pak i | North, hundred, white.
tA Pak, 4 Pak, [Mer oe white
me KIN GK Pat, Pat, Pat, | Not, eight, the god of draught.
Be DA fel Pit Pity Pit, | Must, a species of pheasant, to separate.
54 县 楼; Pok Pok Pok, Name of a District, spacious, jungle.
a3. 瀑 合十 Shap, Shap Shap, Wet, to boil, ten.
ay FARA Shat, shat — Shat To lose, to behead, firm.
- ipyin. 5 月 Snut Sit, Yit, To compassionate, snow, the moon or a month.
26 We pas Tap Tap, Tap, To lick, to answer, to step on.
si nee vy Tat, Tat, Tat, Dab, a spot, projecting.
28 EB ra Tik T'ek Tik, Clear, to kick, an opponent.
29. 3% FR BS Tok Kok Lok, To pound on wood, the foot, a little.
30 Bl Jt Fok Tsak Chiék = Ts‘ak Precept, a register, a thief.
31 wet Hi HE Tsap, Ch'ap Tsap, A heap, to insert, mixed. (kat, tsat,.
32 ie a Ts‘at Ts‘at Tsat, Seven, to brush, a cockroach, as —FY FAS
33 EWI ii Tsik Tsik Tsek,t Immediately, lean, mat.
34 ier Wat Wat, Wat, Bent, to scoop out, smooth,
35 Ge Ag BE Yip, Yip, Yip, Provision for journeys, to salt flesh (to put
into brine), a leaf.
INTRODUCTION. XLV
4
N
Tonic Exercise in the Variant See Tones.
Shéng? hai? gl seas 3 —
Ha | Shong? Ha and Hanon?
Pring SShang SShang cChung HA Meanings.
Variant. | Variant. | Variant. yap, YaPy
Variants Variants.
vee ELai Come,
y CC_，
ue Sai wash,
“Mai
buy
| ,
Fath ‘Hoa’ & tity? go Pal
ia & 食 Man? & shik; ask, eat.
抬 zl ‘of Carry,
i “Se | write,
2 布 | “Mo | none,
过 & 栋 | Kwo]l & matt < cross, wipe.
8 & 2a pee & tuk; buy, read.
一 Les :
47 igbieng Walk,
走 “Tsaa run,
7 上 <Shang go up,
| = #3 Fan’ & chip? sleep, to fold,
o =
SS & 学 Nim? & hok; to recite, to learn.
Remember that all the variant tones except those of the Upper Even,
LP, shong- “和 ing, and Upper Entering, ELA shéng? yap) are rising tones,
that of the Lower Even 下 平 ， ha? -p‘ing, having first a fall, followed by a rise.
The Upper Rising, 上 上 ， shongz ‘shéng has a rest at the end of its rise.
The Lower Rising, 下 上 ， ha? ‘shong is pronounced with more emphasis, etc.
(but see desenipres ee), than is bestowed on the variants of the Lower
Retiring, 下 去 ， ha? how’, and the Lower Entering, BA ha? yap,. Then
again the variants of the Upper Retiring 上 云 ， shongz hoi’ and the Middle
Entering, 中 A: «chung yap, are both shorter in duration than the others.
The variant of the Upper Entering, 上 re shéng* yap,, is a prolongation of
the voice on the same level.
Aspirated and Non-Aspirated Words.
Another distinction which calls for the special attention of the learner is
the difference between aspirated and non-aspirated words. ‘It is a very
important part of pronunciation, as much so in every respect as the tones,
and should be particularly attended to.’—Wittiams’s Easy Lessons in Chinese,
p.55. ‘Itcannot * * be too strongly impressed upon learners from the
Ae
outset that * “ aspirates * * are of the utmost importance to one
XLVI INTRODUCTION.
who would learn Chinese intelligibly. Carelessness about the difference
between aspirated and unaspirated words in Chinese, will often render a
speaker as absolutely unintelligible in China, as a foreigner in England would
be if he should substitute d for ¢ or ¢ for d, saying for instance, ‘‘too dry ” for
‘do try,” or if he should substitute 0 for p or p for 6, speaking of ‘‘ bears”
when he means “ pears” and of ‘ pears” when he means “bears.” It is not
intended here to assert that the difference between aspirated and unaspirated
words is exactly the same as the difference between the English d and ¢ or b
and p sounds, etc., but the difference is quite as distinct and great as this, and
it is even more important in speaking Chinese to observe these differences
than it is in speaking English.’—Fostsr’s Elementary Lessons in Chinese, pp. 29
and 30. And yet it is one of the features of Chinese pronunciation which is,
one might almost say, systematically ignored by many foreigners learning
Chinese, either from a failure to see the distinction, from not understanding
the definitions explaining the difference, or from an idea that it can be of no
importance. This last idea being probably fostered by the feeling that there
is nothing of the kind in English, or in other words, instead of the voice
passing quietly from the initial consonant to the vowel and the final
consonant, a strong breathing out often takes place in English immediately
after the initial consonant. To explain the difference between the aspirated
and unaspirated pronunciation let us take, for example, the word tin. To
pronounce this word the following actions take place. First place the tip of
the tongue on the palate immediately behind the front teeth, then let it
quietly drop while the voice pronounces a something between an English 上
and an English d, that is, it has the sound of the English ¢ but unaccom-
panied with any forcible emission of the voice, which generally does
accompany the pronunciation of the ¢ in English, then after this initial
consonant immediately follows the iz pronounced like een in English. Next
take an aspirated word spelled in the same way, but with an inverted comma
to represent the aspirate in Chinese, as:—t‘in. Here begin as before by
placing the tip of the tongue on the palate behind the front teeth, but imme-
diately the tongue falls and the ¢ is pronounced, it is followed by a strong
breathing out of the voice, this being the way in which many pronounce the
tin English. There is, however, some difference amongst different speakers
of English as to the way in which they pronounce their consonants: that is
to say that there is a dual method of pronouncing two precisely similar
combinations of letters of the alphabet by different individuals in English,
some pronouncing them with a more forcible emission of voice, while others
let them, as it were, simply fall quietly out of their mouths without any or
but slight propulsion. It therefore follows that the usual directions given
as to the pronunciation of the aspirated and unaspirated consonants as
pronounced in Chinese are misleading to many persons. To many the
INTRODUCTION.
XLVII
directions should be given to pronounce the aspirated consonants in the same
way that they do these consonants in English while the unaspirated ones are
to be pronounced flatter and more like the other consonants, such as d and 3,
which they pronounce without any explosive force of the voice in English.
Now in Chinese certain consonants are pronounced much softer and
without any explodent force, while the same consonants are also pronounced
in other words with a strong out-breathing of the voice immediately after
them, as stated above—suppose, in fact, that a Greek rough breathing
comes in; in other words the consonants in Chinese which are pronounced
quietly are also pronounced with a forcible emission of the voice immediately
following them which is represented by the inverted comma in the spelling
Thus ,cha, the ch being
pronounced quietly means, 如 hold, while the same sound, but intensified by
used to show the sound in English of Cantonese.
an explosive force, as, .ch‘a means, fork, Just asin English there are two
ways of pronouncing the th (as for example, thy and thigh, where the only
difference in the sound of the two words consists in the difference between
the pronunciation of the th); so in Chinese the same English consonants
(employed to spell the Chinese) in many cases are used in two different
ways, one unaspirated and the other followed by the aspirate.
The consonants which have theaspirate after them are the following, viz. :—
Ch, k, p, t, and ts.
The learner will find it a good practice to go through the following
exercise daily at first, till he finds no difficulty at all with the unaspirated
and aspirated words :—
yes echa, refuse; ch'd, error.
7p 3 chai, (Sta chai, mass); cch af police.
ia chak,, slanting ; ch’dk,, to fathom.
Bit chak ， to reprove ; ch'ak,, a register
BAYH « cham, a needle ; ch'am, to sink
BAD “cham, to chop off; ch'am>, fine.
=e
Bie:
cch'an， to produce.
月 丑 chang, heel ; ch'ang, to pole.
pal tai chap), a gate ; ch‘ap.., to insert.
+L chaty, a bundle ; ch‘dt,, fo examine.
cin
py . chat, a district ; ch‘ aa’, a bad smell.
Med < chad, claws, Sch'aa, to fry in fat
chan, true ; cch an, dust.
chan, (,tang ‘chén, alamp saucer) ;
1. Orin many connections uch'5ng，
aE EB cche, an umbrella ; Schre, a POEs
BR chek | (a Classifier) ; ch’ ek, a foot.
ALE chi, to know ; cch' i, late.
a ag BAY chim, to divine ; ‘ch'im, to flatter (book).
BEE . chin, felt ; cch' in, to tread (book).
VEFRE ching, the first ; ch' ing, fo style.
raz chit,, to snap in two ; chit, to establish.
朝 朝 chia, morning ; cch'iu, the Court.
BH 4 “cho, to hinder ; chio, the beginning.
Fe chék,, right ; ch'6k。， loose
BR chong, achapter ; ch'éng, a window?
Ab yee chong’, robust ; chiong, a boil.
ii FE. cha, a pig * 1 Sehii i, a pillar.
JBI © choii, to pursue; ,ch‘dii, to blow.
2. Orin many connections och.
XLVIII
INTRODUCTION.
竹 瘟
准 春 ‘chun, to allow; Ch'un， spring.
#4 Jil (chin, a brick ; cch'in， a hill spring.
chung, middle ; cch'ung， to fill.
aH chut,, to blame (book) ; ch'ut,, to go out.
溪 . kai, a fowl ; & ai, a clear hill stream.
He. kai, a street ; Ge ‘ai, a pattern (book).
Se. kam, gold ; kam, 4a coverlet.
Rib pe kan, voots ; ¥en, eile
指 次 . ‘bey soup ; ik ang’, to oppress.
AMX kap, , hasty; k' ap,, to inhale.
Fe kat,, lucky ; krat,, to cough.
ae. kai, a pigeon ; & au, to mix
(kaa, to unite ; ” au’, to rely on.
ee kéi, a few ; & éi, chess
ia Fe kik,, very ; k ek, + clogs.
FREE . kim, moreover ; & im, tongs.
BRK kin, firm ; “k‘in, to lift up (a cover)
Bilt oe capital city ; ki ing, a whale
tere kia? * a sedan; et fa, a bridge.
改 项 koi, to change; k‘ of”, a cover.
AS THE kok, , each ; kt ok, really.
ileal kok, , foot; k* ok, to stop (book).
Pa . on just; kt ong”, a sofa.
a 昌 。 kong, ginger ; ns ong, by force.
BRE. ki, to dwell ; k'dii, a drain.
pepe ckiin, to squeeze through ; ck'tin, the fist.
公寓 cung， public ; Kung, Bony,
ER kit,, deficient , k'wat,, united strength.
We kwa, a melon ; iw, to brag.
eas) Ewa, home ; B'wai, a custom.
Ba kwan, vuley ; Kwan, a skirt.
HKFE Kwong, light ; ckwong, mad.
lS “pA, to seize ; Pa, a guitar.
Peay (pai, lame ; (Pia, to pare,
teEhy “pai, to spread out ; P‘ai, a shield.
百 柏 pak, hundred ; p'ak., to clap.
, clear ; kit, to borrow.
chuk,, bamboo ; ch‘uk,, domestic animals.
| A Os‘ tam, to hammer ;
PEEL ‘pan, a petition; (p'an, poor.
EES <pan, a grade; <P' En， to drag.
wil
a7 pang’, bang! <P'4ng, @ land-crab.
RE pat,, ot; p‘at,, bay (of cloth).
pang, a fracture ; <P‘ang, a friend.
ALP ， pau, to wrap ia <P ‘Au, to cast (anchor).
AML eS péi, to give ; P éi, leather, or skin.
3H He pik,, to urge; p ‘ek | 1, to throw away.
JEFF. pin, the side; p‘ in’, slip (slice).
兵 平 (Ping, a soldier ; <P ing, even.
ii pit,
dea
, must ; Pit. a down stroke.
pia, a banner ; pita’, to bleach.
Wie ,PO, 4 wave; pro, a classifier of trees, etc.
Ag SH “Po， to boil ; (P'S, to spread out.
tHE pok ., intelligent ; p'ok,, to flap.
Hoe <Pong, to heip ; .p'ong, side.
TRS . pui, a cup; <P’, to indemnify.
TE ME . pin, to remove ; <P on, @ basin.
ke & pung?, to run against ; Pung, 4 sail.
K s
Ses Pte a coarse dish; p' at,
FT fi, ta, to strike ; va another.
ish ， tai, to bend as tat, a ladder.
wok tar , 4 givdle ; tar , excessive.
to dash water
“te am, a cess-pool.
fa &
en (tan, 4 heap ; (tan, to swallow.
12] 1 4 » e¢
a HE (tan, alone ; tn, to spread open.
KE AE (tang, a lamp ; tang, vattan.
Bye tap, fo answer; t'Ap., a pagoda.
JERE tat,, to pervade; t’dt_, a dead loss.
’ Ge so pte
2+ Gi tad, a dry measure ; cf au, fo steal.
$3 BB tek,t, to buy rice ; tek t, to kick.
Sy HE cteng,t a nail ; Strengt, a boat.
的 易 tik), clear ; tik, to scrape off.
点 添 “tim, a spot ; tim, to increase.
BAK. tin, crazy; (t in, the sky.
tam, to carry ; ot Am, to covet.
天 (=. ting, a jingling sound ; ct ing, a pavilion.
ee lis tip,, a plate; tip. a card.
INTRODUCTION.
XLIX
PR tit,, to fall; tt iron.
FEE + 116, to throw away; tia, a classifwy
Bits . to, many ; (fo to lead (by the hand).
TI . td, a knife ; zt 6,* or (td, peach.
AAS tof?, a ne zt of*, a table
Ex tok, , to measure; t' ok to carry
BG . tong, proper; ong, soup.
剂 | 妻 . tsai, a dose ; ts'ai a wife
>
(EE tan
Bere . tsam, « hairpin; <ts‘4m, a silkworm.
(E35 teen? , to praise ; ts an, a meal.
, to es cts'am, to look for.
pet Fee . tsang, to hate; cs ang, alayer, or storey.
esa tsap,, handful ; 4g ap,. to join.
tsat,, disease ; ts‘ at,, seven.
ERK S tsais, to run; ts’ ad, autumn.
ah tse, an elder ae cts'e， depraved.
还 威 tsik,, a foot-mark; ts‘ ik,, related to.
AWN &e
Ai
in Ta. tsing, sade ais: ing, pure
tsip .,
ts, sharp ; as im, to ius
tsin, to fry; (ts in, a thousand.
to receive; ts‘ip a concubine
o
Long and Short Vowels.
4
iD] tsit,, averse, ts‘it, , to cut (in slices) -
inte ctsit, pepper; -ts'it, scattered wood.
左 错 - tso, the left; ts‘ ° , WYONL.
A
FLOR « tsoi’, again ; ts’ oi! pshau!
ctso， vent; cts'0， coarse.
EE tsok ., to ere ts‘ ok. to tattoo.
yee tsong’, to bury; (fs'ong, a granary
聚 取 tsbii2， to assemble ;cts'6ii， to take.
ESE tsuk, , the foot; ts' uk,, hurried.
PBR ， ie a bottle ; <ts' un, fo cruise.
cj Dy tsiin, jimmie: (ts iin, a village.
标 极 ， tsung, coir; <ts' os the pine tree.
Kiting ae to sunder; ts‘ ut. 4 pinch.
子 “tsz, a son, ae Z, mercy.
7
HEHE . tii, a heap; aa Oui, to push away.
AR FE tuk, , to lead; : uk 4 Buddhist priest.
| Se on angry ; & un, @ vapid current.
Fl
| 东 通 ctung， east ; # ung, to go through.
ESS, tit, to take by force; t’ iit, , to strip.
cts6ng， shall ; uts'5ng， a gun.
“tin, short; itn, a globular mass.
Another most important feature in Cantonese is the long and short vowels and
diphthongs.
The beginner must drill himself in these daily, and make sure that
he is pronouncing a word containing a long vowel with the vowel long and one
with a short vowel with the vowel short. Dr. Eitel rightly says about these:—
‘Another characteristic feature of the Cantonese dialect is the distinction of long and
short vowels and diphthongs, which should be specially studied from the beginning,
to accustom the ear to the discrimination of these shades, which is indispensable for
a ready and correct understanding of the spoken language.’—Introduction to
Cantonese Dictionary, p. Xiil.
To enable the learner to ‘specially study’ these distinctions, tables of many
of them are here appended; and the learner should go through them with his
L INTRODUCTION.
teacher day by day till perfect, and even then a run through them occasionally will
do him good.
5
Peg ak, _ to grasp; Ak ot bangle. PR Rte nan, to handle; .nan, dificult.
Web = .
HEI . am, to cover ; “4m, au unopened flower. Ay nap,, 4 grain; nap,* or nap,, quilted.
un af . ang, the nightingale ; (Ang, a jar. Wan nat,, joyful ; nat, to smooth.
Yen, ap, to cover over ; 4p. a duck. Bnaa ngak,. to swindle ; ngak,, front.
DUP at, , to thrust in; at_, to pawn for a time. is Be cngam, foolish ; cngam， precipice.
WN a 3° slanting ; chat, to veprove. 银 眼 cugan, money ; Sngén, eve.
ati ee a needle ; ‘cham, to cut in two, Wee ngap,, to talk wildly ; ngap ， to tuck in.
n=a cchan true; ‘chan, a shallow cup for oil, Puss ngat,, to sway;ngat , a rank smell.
Ent 2 5
ay chang, aharpischord ; cchang, to wrangle. 北 百 pak, north ; pak one hundred.
fa chap), to pick up: chap,, Q barrier, Bes cP'an, poor; LpP'an， to lead.
+L chat,, substance ; chat, a bundle. | Syne pang, an eniperor's death ; pang?, bang !
Af ML. fan, to divide ; fan, all RIN Pat wot; pat , eight.
oO
TBE fat, to brush away ; fat_ , usage. : 4 NAN 一 sam, the heart ; am, three.
黑客 hak ， black ; hak ， Gaunt wk (San, nea : san’, to scatter.
HEH . fan, a mark ; nhs leisure. We val Sap,, to enter the mouth ; sap. suddenly .
BGT . eae to knock. against ; chang, to walk. Mit 沁 sat_, the knee ; sat , to disperse.
PATH hap, , sleepy ; hap ， to gulp. RI ， Sita: deep ; sham, clothes.
WRG hat, the throat; nag skilful. 身 Uy. shan, body; ‘shin, mountain.
eee . kam, metal ; kam, a gaol. 生 吵 . Paes to a ‘shang, to scour.
ii ie he root ; (kan, an interval. 1 AI shap,, wet ; shap ., to provoke.
kang, a thick soup ; kang, a by-path. KAY shat,, to lose ; shat,, to kill.
aH kap, , hasty ; kap , armour for the body. Heys S sete to pound ; Ase to carry from a
eal wan, the prince; kwan, to bar a door. pole.
a Be Ewang, rumbling ; eee to ramble. By re (tan, @ heap; tan, single.
iH, a on - tg save
骨 逢 | : kwat,, bone ; kwat to scrape. BES tap,, fo be rained on; tap, to answer
ie ae te a grove; Jam", a bashet. a BES tat,, a tenon ; tat,, intelligent.
Dany - ulang， a jingle ; Sang, cold. fie E tsak,, bream ; ts‘ ak, , a thief.
—L.
cv lap,, a pottle; lap,, to establish. ae hak to soak ; sim, hairpin,
FARR lat,, to let go, lat,, pungent. HE (ts'an, related a .{s'4n, a meal,
4 mak,, wheat ; mak, to break in two, | pe tsap,, a handful ; tsdp,, mixed.
Hecfat oman, mosquito; man, to pull. + 和 ts at » to brush.
we cmang, an alliance; .mang, blind. sei wan, cloud ; wan, to return.
BK « mat,, what ; mat, to wipe. ARGV wat,, the ston) seeds of fruit; waty,
AR ， nam, mellow ; nam, mate. smooth.
INTRODUCTION. LI
The Long and Short Diphthongs al and al.
工控 . ai, whew! ai to lean upon. CARE . shai, sieve ; shai’, to dry in the sun.
pie ， ee to ‘ae chai, to abstain. 低 带 . tai, to bend down; tai’, a ribbon.
BAe far? , to spend; far, quick. BRR . wai, dignity; wai?, to spoil.
$8 ay kai. a foul; kai, a street. Vey chai, clay ; nai, lady.
Be ale (Kwai, home ; (Ewa, good (as a child). aE agai, to importune ; chsai, beach.
WE FAG dat to come; 1ai, to pull. SRE ,pat lame; pai’, to worship.
vy
KBE cmai, to ae emai, to hide away.
Exercises on the Long and Short Diphthongs al el al.
qT. A FERR fai?, the lungs ; fi, not; f4i?, a lump.
hai, to be; hel, happy ; nai, a shoe.
TR
. BSE S kai, os8iooe; eet, subtle : kai, a street.
BeAr cai, to come ; Ses, a plum; 16, to pull.
- RSS “mai, rice; .méi, minute; mai, to sell.
-所 你 乃 ar mire; “néi, you; a, but.
- Sat BE par sad ; “péi, to give; “pa, to ea out.
第 地 大 tai? , 4 younger brother ; teP， earth; t 2 er eal.
N
ar nu + Ww
Imtm
The Long and Short Diphthongs au and au.
ea] a4 a surname ; “4a, to snap in two. yRSP maa, to squat down ; qmaa, reeds.
JA HR cha, universal ; “chau, to exchange. +R “nati, to twist; nat, to scold.
喉 巧 chaa, the throat: “haa, skilful. ， AE Wwe cngai, an 0x: Sngaa, to: Bite:
9B a “kad, nine ; “Kaa, to twist. Till 4 p‘au, to divide ; (pai, to wrap around.
Wet clad, to flow; (lat, to drag for in water WF . shai, to receive; shat, a basket.
Exercise on e and i (=ee).
HB. ch‘e, a carriage ; chi, to know. WRN, . nge, whine ; ees hesitating.
1 BA . he! holloa! ‘hin, ae ae . pe, beer; pin’, convenient.
OBE, Fa, ke?; ; sign of possessive; kin’, to see. Bit a to write ; sin, first.
a le, a final ae clin, the lotus. 3 ， she, on era shfn2， virtuous. |
22 ‘ me, awry; min?, the face. BRK (fe dad, ‘in, the sky.
> a 3!
ACE ne, there! nin, year Ei tse’, fo borrow; tsin’, an arrow.
< < B
工 II INTRODUCTION，
Exercise on Short and Long i, viz., i and i.
gall ae to weave; a to know.
BAS 是 fing”, 加 swing; “hin, manifest.
HR . king, @ capital ; kit, , pure.
kwik,, a crack; kwit ， shrill.
BABE . ling， es din, ane
HH $4 ming, clear ; Shin, to force.
Ferg ping， a soldier: pin’, to alter.
Sing, a star; sin, genii.
eae . hing a ona Shi. a hymn.
EHH ting’, to fix; “in a canon,
PRI tsing?, pure; isin, to fry.
i Hse wing, to en wit, creaking.
<
te ag ， ning, to take; Sain; a Slice. |
(4
Whenever o is only used with an initial consonant or consonants and
without a final consonant both the open o, and close 6 are used in the Cantonese.
Exceptions :—cho, fo, kwo, and wo, there being no cho, fo, kw6, or wo.
Whenever the o is followed by the final consonants k, n, ng, and t, then the
o is an open one, as:—ok, on, ong, and kot.
Whenever the o is followed by the final consonant m, and p, then it has the
close sound of 6, as 6m, kép.
Exercise on Long and Short o, viz., 0 and o.
阻 早 “cho, to hinder ; “tsa, early. | $B DO, & goose; B80, to shake.
Ay = = « ho, what? cho， dowm (hair). WEE - Po, & wave; Po， to boil.
歌 高 . ko, @ song; ko， high. PRE . sho, wide aa sho’, an account.
HEE lo, to fetch; Ya, a fellow. 镇 区- so, @ lock; (80, @ beard.
fie =e cmo， to rub; emo, hair. Fe fit ‘ tso, left; ie to do.
There are other combinations in which the o both long and short are used; but
in these other combinations only one kind of o is used with each combination;
they do not therefore come into such striking contrast as when appearing simply
with initial consonants, and, moreover, the above Exercise is sufficient to give the
learner a knowledge of the difference between the two pronunciations.
Exercise on u, u and u.
(EE ES Pa chun, to permit; fan, to velax ; _chin, single.
tar a lun, constant; min, door ; lin2, pees
NW ASHE shun? compliant: “pan, the ovigin ; shiin, a ship.
These will be sufficient to show the difference between these sounds.
4
INTRODUCTION. LIII
Exercise on ou and ul.
Li Lis
i6 JK choi, to pursue ; fai, ashes.
Ga cs ag
水 标 shot, water; pai, u cup.
最 le] tsou’, to assemble ; (Wat, « time.
These few examples will show the difference between these two sounds;
but the learner must note that the English Dictionaries of Cantonese, which
are nearly all based on the Fan I!’an, are not to be trusted for giving these
sounds; some that should be under 6ii are classed with those under Ui, and
again others belonging to these classes are spelled with the i.
The Chinese, not having an alphabetical language and therefore not being
accustomed to such a mode of representing the sounds, have not their ears so
acutely trained to distinguish between slight distinctions and differences in
sounds as represented by letters of the alphabet, as they are to distinguish
differences in the tones, and are consequently not altogether to be trusted in
their classifications of sounds. Dictionary makers should take the correct
pronunciation of good speakers of a standard dialect (such for example as
Canton-city Cantonese) instead of blindly following the guidance of native
compilations, which sometimes mislead.
Pronunciation.
a like u, e.g.:—san, as sun. ai like i in high, e.g.:—fai, as fie.
4 ,, ah, e.g.:—pé, as pa. f aa ,, ou in plough, e.g.:-—hat, as how.
e ,, ein men, e.g.:—meng. 4a ,, aaow, eg. :—haa.
: me ‘ r : éi ,, ey in they, e.g.:—p‘éi, as pay.
1 ,, 1in pin, e,g.:—king, as king. = 了 ee pay
; Se ; fa ,, ew in few, e.g.:—shit.
i ,, fin machine, e.g.:—kin, as keen. | P , ne
of ,, oy in boy, e.g.:—k'‘of, as coy
© ,, in order, e g.:—ho, as haw. éii nearly as in louis, e.g. :—shéi.
6 ,, 6in so, e.g.:—mé, as (to) mow. Uf like ooee, e.g.:—-mui.
6 nearly like er in her, e.g..—ho, as he(r). sz, run the sounds of the letters sand z
u » ,, in hur, e.g.:—shun. together.
a like u in fool, e.g.:—wa, as woo.
m is the sound of the letter m alone
without any vowel and formed with
ui ,, French u in l'une, e.g.:—siit. the lips closed.
ai ,, iin while, e.g.:— fai. ng like ng in sing.
|
There is no b, d, g alone, j, q, v, x or z sounds in Cantonese. The nearest
approach to r is in the word for boot, which sounds very much like her, as an
Englishman who scarcely pronounces his y would sound it, not asa Scotchman
would pronounce it.
INTRODUCTION.
The rest of the letters are pronounced as in English. The only difficulty
the learner will find will be in pronouncing them soft enough when unaspi-
rated (especially is this true with the letters p, # and¢), as we generally
pronounce those consonants in English, which are sometimes followed by
aspirates in Chinese with sufficient force to render them aspirated, though
in some parts of England they are always pronounced unaspirated.
Be very careful about the distinction between the short a and the long a.
Men that have lived many years in China are often so oblivious of the living
pronunciation as not to notice that they are led away by the peculiar use of
this short 4 to represent a w—and in fact pronounce San Ning as spelled, and
not as Sun Ning, the correct sound. This is a most common mistake with
Europeans, and it is extremely disagreeable and pitiable to hear the
persistence with which they will adhere to this egregious mistake, for there is
no such sound in Chinese as ‘‘san”’ in sandy.
To correct such and similar tendencies a syllabary is here appended in
which, whenever possible to do so, the Chinese sounds have been represented
by sounds of the English letters, or by words in English, etc., so that between
the list given above and this that follows the learner ought, especially with
the assistance of his teacher, to arrive at the correct pronunciation.
Let the learner remember that this is of great importance.
The sk in Cantonese is pronounced softer than in English.
SYLLABARY OF CANTONESE.
THe ORTHOGRAPHY ADOPTED IN THIS BOOK REPRESENTED BY SIMILAR
SouNDS IN ENGLISH, ETC., WHEN SUCH SounpDs EXIST, OR BY COMBINATIONS
OF THE LETTERS OF THE ENGLISH ALPHABET.
Only the letters not bracketed are to be imitated in sound, but with the
sound that they have when in union with those in brackets.
If blanks are left in the syllabary it is in consequence of no equivalent
sounds appearing in English, or under such circumstances it is stated that
the sound is nearly, or somewhat like such and such a combination of English
letters. In such cases the former list and a careful imitation of the Chinese
voice ought to assist the beginner, especially with perseverance, to attain to
what at first may seem to him almost to necessitate an impossible contortion
of his vocal organs.
Even when tolerably sure of his pronunciation, the beginner will find it of
advantage to check it by this syllabary, as mistakes at first generally result
in a tendency to a permanently vicious pronunciation, which, when once
fixed, will be very difficult to change.
"=
INTRODUCTION， LV
The unaspirated words the learner will notice, by listening to his teacher, are
pronounced much softer and without the explodent force which the aspirated words
have. The sounds of the consonants when unaspirated must be particularly
noticed. They sound much flatter than the English consonants, which are used to
represent the nearest approach to their sound. Remember that ch unaspirated
is much flatter than ch in English, almost reaching the dj, but never actually that.
In order to draw particular attention to this sound of some of the consonants the
aspirated ones are followed by an h in the English spelling in this syllabary, though
it must be remembered, as said before, that the aspirated consonants often approach
nearer to the English sound of the consonants than the unaspirated ones in Chinese.
ch unaspirated sounds almost midway between the English sounds of dj and ch.
k a ad Ba 而 公克
hee ，， ” 55 $8 gw, kw,
b : : : ; ey
t e . a sf aera
ts i i a i ds ,, ts.
These.are the only consonants and combinations of consonants which are
followed by the aspirate.
There are in Cantonese 780 different syllables or words which are represented
by a different spelling in English.
A
Am as a(r)m. | At as (h)ut.
An as A(h)n(hold). ; At as (h)a(r)t.
, At as (h)ow.
Aas ah!
Ai as i(dle).
Ai as eye, or aye Ang as (h)ung.
Ak us Ux (bridge).*
Ak as a(r)k.
Ang as ahng. At as a(h)oo.
Ap «ds up.
Am as (h)um. . Ap as (h)a(r)p
c
Cha as cha(rm). | Chtak as chhuck. ) Chan as chun.
Ch‘4 as chha(rm) ' Chak as chahk | Ch‘an as chhun
Chai as chi(1d)
Chai as Chi(na).
Chai as Chhi.
Ch'ai as Chhi(na).
Chak as chuck.
Ch'ak as chhahk.
Cham as chum.
Ch'am as chhum.
Cham as cha(r)m
Ch‘dm as chha(r)m.
* Like Uk, that is to say the s in the x not being sounded.
+ Not choong, but the word is pronounced as if the h of hung were changed into ch.
Chan as chahn.
Ch‘an as chhahn.
Chang as ch(h)ung.+
Chang as chahng
Ch‘ang as chhahng.
LVI
Chap as chup.
Chap as chahp.
Ch‘4p as chhahp.
Chat as chut(ney).
Chat as chaht.
Chiat as chhaht.
Chat as chow.
Ch‘at as chhow.
Chaa as cha(h)ow.
Ch‘da as chha(h)oo.
Che as che(rry).
Ch'e as chhe(rry).
Chek as chek.
Ch‘ek as chhek.
Cheng as cheng.
Chret as chhet.
Chi as cheese.
Ch‘i as chhee(se).
Chik as chick.
Fa as Fa(ther).
Fai as fi(ne).
Fai as fi(delity).
Fak as Fa(r)q(uhar).
Fan as fun.
Fan as fahn.
Fang as f(h)ung.
Fat as fut.
Ha as Ha!
Haj as hi(de).
Hai as high.
INTRODUCTION.
Ch'‘ik as chhick.
Chim as cheem.
Ch'fm as chheem.
Chin as cheen.
Ch'in as chheen.
Ching as ching.
Ch'ing as chhing
Chip as cheep.
Chit as cheat.
Chit as chhee(tah)
Chita as cheeoo.
Ch‘iu as chheeoo.
Cho as chaw.
Ch'o as chhaw.
Chok as chalk.
Chok as Ch(h)u(r)k.*
Ch‘6k as Chh(h)u(r)k.*
Chong as chong
Ch'ong as chhong.
E as e(dible).
F
Fat as faht.
Fai as fow.
Féi as fay.
Fik as fick(le)
Fing as fing(er).
' Fit as feet.
Fo as fo(rtune).
Fok as fok.
H
Hak as huck(ster).
Hak as ha(r)k.
Ham as hum.
Chong as Ch(h)u(r)ng.”
Ch'ong as Chh(h)u(r)ng.*
Chi as chue.
Ch‘ii as chhue.
Choi something like chooee.
Ch‘6it something like chhooee.
Chuk something like chook.
Ch'uk something like chhook.
Chun as chu(r)n.
Ch‘un as chhu(r)n.
Chiin as chune.
Ch'in as chhune, combination
of ch and French une.
Chung as choong.
Chung as chhoong.
Chut as ch(h)u(r)t.
Ch'ut somewhat like chut(ney),
but purse the lips together.
' Chit as Chuet.
’ Fong as fong.
Fu as foo(l).
Fui as fooee.
Fuk as fook.
Fun as foon.
Fung as fung.
Fat as foot.
Ham as ha(r)m.
Han as hun.
Han as hahn.
* This u to be pronounced like the German 6.
INTRODUCTION.
Hang as hung.
Hang as hahng.
Hap as hup.
Hap as ha(r)p.
Hat as hut.
Hai as how.
Hat as ha(h)ow.
He as hey.
Héi as hay.
Him as heem
Hin as heen.
Ka as ca(r).
K‘a as kha
Kai as ki(te).
K‘ai as khi(te).
Kai as c(r)y.
K‘ai as ch(r)y
KK'ak as k(h)uck.
Kak as kahk.
Kam as come.
K‘am as chome.
Kam as Ca(r)m(el).
Kan as kun.
K‘an as khun.
Kan as khan.
Kang as k(h)ung.
K‘ang as khung.
Kang as cangue
Kap as cup.
K‘ap as khup.
Kap as ca(r)p.
Kat as cut.
K‘at as khut.
Kat as ca(r)t.
Kaa as cow.
Hing as hing.
Hip as heep.
Hit as heat.
Hit as hew, or heeoo.
Ho as haw.
Ho as Ho!
H6 as he(r).
Hoi as (ship a) hoy!
Hok us hock.
Hom something between ho(r)m
and hum.
K
| K'at as khow.
Kaa as ka(h)ow.
K'aa as kha(h)ow.
Ke as ca(re).
K'e as cha(re)
Kéi as kay.
K‘éi as khay.
Kek as keck.
K‘ek as kheck.
K‘em as k(h)em.
Keng as keng.
K'eng as kheng.
Kik as kick.
K'ik as khick.
Kim as keem
K'‘im as kheem.
xin as keen.
K‘in as kheen.
King as king.
K‘ing as khing.
Kip as keep.
Kit as keet.
K‘it as kheet.
Kia as keeoo.
Hon as ho(r)n.
Hong as hong.
Hing as he(r)ng.
Hop something between ho(r)p
and hut.
Hot as ho(r)t(iculture
H6ii nearly hooee.
Huk as hook.
Hiin as huen.
Hung as hung.
Hit as huet.
Kit as kheeoo.
Ko as co(r)e.
K6 as co(de),
Kof as coy.
K‘oi as khoy. .
Kok as cock.
K‘ok as khock.
Kom as co(r)m
Kon as co(r)n.
Kong as kong.
K‘ong as khong.
Kop as co(r)p(se).
Kot as cou(r)t.
Kok as ke(r)k.
K'6k as khe(r)k.
Kong as ku(r)ng.
K‘ong as khu(r)ng.
Ko nearly like kooee.
K‘6ui nearly like khooee.
Kuk as cook.
K‘uk as khook.
Kiin as kune.*
K'in as khune.
Kung as koong.
* This has the sound of the French word une with a k prefixed.
INTRODUCTION，
K‘ung as khoong.
Kit as kuet.
Kit as khu(e)t.
Kwa as qua(Im).
K‘wa as ghua(Im).
Kwai as kwiee
K‘wai as khwiee.
Kwai as qui(etus).
Kwai as khwai.
Kwak as kwahk.
Kwan as kwun.
La as La!
Lai as (g)li(de)
Lai as lie.
Lak as luck.
Lak as la(r)k
Lam as Lum(ley)
Lam as Lahm.
Lan as Lun(dy)
Lan as lahn.
Lang as lung.
Lang as lahng
Lap as lup.
Lap as lahp.
Lat as Lut(ton).
Lat as laht.
M as m(a).
Ma as ma.
Mai as mi(ne).
Mai as my.t
Mak as muck.
Mak as mahk.
Man as mun(dane).
K'‘wan as khwun.
Kwan as kwahn.
Kwang as kwung.
Kwang as kwahng.
K'wang as khwang.
Kwat as kwut
Kwat as kwaht.
Kwe as kweh.
K'weng as khweng.
Kwik as quick.
Kwing as kwing.
L
Lat as I(h)ow.
Lau as la(h)oo.
Le as I(th)e(re).
Léi as lay.
Leng as leng.
Lik as lick.
Lim as leem.
Lin as lean.
Ling as ling
Lip as leap.
Lit as lit(re)
Lit as leeoo.
Lo as law
Lo as Lo!
Lé as ler.*
M
Man as mahn
Mang as mung
Mang as mahng
Mat us mut(ter)
Mat as maht.
Man as mow.
Maa as ma(h)oo
Kwit as kweet.
Kwo as kwoh.
Kwok as kwok.
Kwong as kwong.
K‘wong as khwong.
Kw as kwoo.
K'‘wa as khwoo.
Kwui as kwooee
Kwan as kwoon.
Kwiat as kwoot.
Loi as (al)loy.
Lok as lock.
Lom as lom.
Long as long.
L6k as le(r)
Long as le(r)ng.
Loi somewhat like looee.
Luk as look.
Lun as lea(r)n.
Lin as l'une.
Lung as lung.
Lut as I(h)u(r)t.
Liit something like looeet.
Me as me(ddle).
Meng as meng.
Méi as may.
Mik as mick.
Min as mean
Ming as ming.
Mit as meat.
* Only give the faintest ghost of a sound to the er.
+ An open full sound.
INTRODUCTION.
Mit as mew.
Mo as maw.
Mo as mo(de)
Mom as mom.
Na as nah.
Nai as ni(ne).
Nai as nigh.
Nak as nuk
Nam as numb.
Nam as nahm
Nan as nun.
Nan as nahn.
Nang us nung
Nap as nup.
Nap as nahp.
Nat as nut,
Nat as naht.
Nau as now.
“
ati as naaow.
Ngak as (si)ng-uk.
O as awe.
Was oh!
Oi as (h)oy
Pa as pa
P‘a us pha
Pai as pi(ne)
|
|
|
Mok as mawk.
Mong as mong.
Mui as mooee.
Muk as mook.
N
Negak as (si)ng-ahk
Ngam us (si)ng-um.
Ngam as (si)ng-ahm
Ngan as (si)ng-un.
Ngan as (si)ng-ahn
Ngang as (si)ng-ung.
Negang as (si)ng-ahng.
Ngap us (si)ng-up.
Ngap as (si)ng-ahp.
Ngat as (si)ng-ut
Neat as (si)ng-aht.
Ngati as (si)ng-(h)ow.
Neat as (sijng-ahow.
Nege as (si)ng-(th)e(re).
‘gi as (Si)ng-ee.
git as (si)ng-eat.
go as (Sijng-awe
N
N
N
Ngo as (si)ng-oh!
Negoit us (si)ng-(ah)oi.
Negok as (si)ng-(s)ock.
Ngon us (si)ng-(h)on(g)
Ngong as (si)ng-(h)ong.
O
Ok us awk(ward)
Ok as euk.
Om as u(r)m
P
P'ai as phi(ne)
Pai as pie
Pai as phie
* French une.
Man as moon.
Maun as mooon.
Mung as moong.
Mut as moot
Ni, er Nias nih, or nee
Nei as ney
Nik as nick
Nim as neem
Nin as neen.
Ning as ning.
Nip as neap.
Nit ds neat.
Nia as neeoo.
No as no(r).
No as no.
Noi as (an)noy.
Nok as knock.
Nong as nong
Nong as nu(rr)ng.
Na somewhat like nooee.
Nuk as nook.
Niin as nune.*
Nung as noong.
Nut as nu(r)t(ure)
On us o(r)n(ament)
Ong as (s)ong.
Pak as puck
Pak us pairik
Pak as pha(r)k
LIX
Lx
Pan as pun.
Pran as phun.
Pan as pahn.
P‘an as phahn.
Pang as p(h)ung.
Pang as phung.*
Pang as pahng.
Pang as phahng
Pat as put.
卫 'at as phut.
Pat as paht.
Pat as pow.
Pat as phow.
Pat as pa(h)ow.
了 Pa as pha(h)oo.
Pre as peh.
Péi as pay.
P‘éi as p(h)ay.
Sa as sah.
Sai as cy(der).
Sai as sigh.
Sak as suck.
Sam as some.
Sam as sahm
San as sun.
San as sahn.
Sang as sung.
Sap as sup.
Sap as sahp.
Sat as sut.
Sat as saht.
Sati as sow.
Sat as saou.
Se as Se(ttle).
Seng as seng.
INTRODUCTION.
Peng as peng.
P‘eng as pheng.
Pik as pick.
Pik as phick.
Pin as peen.
P'in as pheen.
Ping as ping.
P‘ing as phing.
Pit as peat.
Pit as pheat.
Pia as peeoo.
P‘ié as pheeoo.
Po as paw.
_ P‘o as phaw.
Po as Po.
P'o as Pho.
Pok as pawk.
P‘ok as phawk.
S
Sha as Shah.
Shai as shi(ne).
Shai as shy.
' Shak as sha(r)k.
Sham as shum.
Sham as shahm.
Shan as shun.
| Shan as shahn.
Shang as sh(h)ung.
Shang as shahng.
Shap as shup.
Shap as sha(r)p.
Shat as shut.
Shat as shaht
Shat as shhow.
Shai as sha(h)oo.
Shé as sche(dule).
Pom as pom.
P'om as phom.
Pong as pong.
P‘ong as phong.
Pop nearly as Pu(r)p.
P‘op nearly as phu(r)p.
Pai as pooee.
P'ai as phooee
Puk as pook.
P‘uk as phook.
Pan as poon.
Pan as phoon.
Pung as poong.
Pung as phoong.*
Put as put.
' Pit as phoot.
Sheng as sheng
Shi as she.
Shik as shik.
Shim as sheem.
Shin as sheen.
Shing as shing.
Ship as sheep.
Shit as sheet
Shit as sheeoo.
Sho as Shaw.
Sho as show.
Shok as shock.
Shong as shong.
Sha5k as shi(r)k.
Shong as she(r)ng.
Shi us chu(t).
Sha nearly like shooee.
* That is to say pronounce hung, then puta / in the place of h, retaining the same pronunciation
to the rest of the letters as before.
INTRODUCTION.
LXI
Shuk as shook.
Shiin as shune.
Shun as shu(r)n.
Shung as shoong.
Shut as shi(r)t.
Shiit nearly shuet.
Sik as sick.
Sin as seen.
Sing as sing.
Sip as s(l)eep.
Sit as seat.
Ta as tah.
T‘A as thah.
Tai as ti(dy)
T'ai as thi(dy).
Tai as tie.
Tai as thie.
Tak as tuck.
Tam as tum.
T‘am as thum.
Tam as tahm
T‘4m as thahm
Tan as tun.
T‘an as thun.
Tan as tahn.
T‘4n as thahn.
Tang as tong(ue).
T:ang as thong(ue).
Tap as tup.
Tap as thup.
Tap as tahp.
Tp as thahp,
Tat as tut.
Tat as taht.
Tat as thaht.
Taa as t(hjow.
T'aa as thhow.
Sit as seeoo.
So as swo(rd).
So as so.
S6 as si(r).
Sof as soy.
Sok as sawk.
S6k as se(r)k.
Song as song.
Séng as su(r)ng.
S6ii nearly like sooee.
Suk as sook.
T
Te as tea(r).
Téi as t(h)ey.
Teng as teng.
Teng as theng.
Ti, or ti as tih, or tea.
Tik as tick.
Tiik as thick.
Tim as team.
T‘im as theam.
Tin as teen.
Tin as theen.
Ting as ting.
Ting as thing.
Tip as teep.
T‘ip as theep.
Tit as teet.
Tit as theet.
Tid as teeoo.
_ Tit as theeoo.
| To as to(re).
T‘o as Tho(re).
_ To as toe.
T‘6 as thoe.
Toi as toy
T‘oi as thoy
Tok as talk.
Sun as (con)ce(r)n.
Siin as sooeene.
Sung as soong.
Sut as (con)ce(r)t.
Siit as suet; pronounce the word
quickly and run the vowels
together.
Sz join s and z and sound
together, beginning with a
simple s and passing on to the
sound of the z
T‘ok as thalk.
TOk as te(r)k
Tong as Tong(a).
T'ong as Thong(a).
T6 as t(h)u(r).
Tong as te(r)ng.
Tsa as tsah.
Tsai as tsie.
Ts‘ai as tshie.
Ts'aii as tshahi.
Tsak as tsuk.
Tsak as tshahk.
Tsam as tsum.
Ts‘am as tshum.
Tsam as tsahm.
Ts'am as tshahm.
Ts‘an as tsun.
Tsan as tsahn.
Ts'an as tshahn.
Tsang as ts(h)ung.
Ts‘ang as tshung.
Tsap as tsup.
Ts‘ap as tshup.
Tsip as tsahp.
Tsat as tsut.
Ts‘at as tshut.
LXII
TsAt as tsaht.
Ts‘at as tshaht.
Tsat as ts(h)ow.
Ts‘aa as tshow.
Tse as ts(th)e(re).
Ts'e as tsh(th)e(re).
Tseng as tseng.
Ts‘eng as tsheng.
Tsik as tsik.
Ts‘ik as tshik.
Tsim as tseem.
Ts‘im as tsheem.
Tsin as tseen.
Ts‘in as tsheen.
Tsing as tsing.
Ts'ing as tshing.
Tsip as tseep.
Ts'fp as tsheep.
Tsit as tseet.
Ts'ft as tsheet.
Tsia as tseeoo.
Uk something between uk and
ook.
Wa as wah.
Wai as wei.
Wai as Wye.
Wak as wahk.
Wan as one.
Wan as wahn.
Wang us wung.
Wang as wahng.
Ya as yah.
Yai as yi(dle).
Yak as yahk.
INTRODUCTION.
Ts'it as tsheeoo.
Tso as tsawe.
Ts'o as tshawe.
TsO as tso.
Ts'o as tsho.
Tsoi as tsoy
Ts‘oi as tshoy.
Tsok as tsawk.
Ts‘ok as tshawk.
Tsong as tsawng.
Ts‘ong as tshawng.
Ts6ng as tsu(rr)ng.
Ts'ong as tshu(rr)ng.
Tsoti nearly like tsooee.
Ts‘6ui nearly like tshooee.
Tsuk as tsook.
Ts‘uk as tshook.
Tsun as tsu(r)n.
Ts‘un as tshu(r)n.
Tsiin as tsooeene.
Ts'un as tshooeene.
U
Ung as ooong.
Ww
Wat as wut.
Wat as waht.
We as we(ar),
Wi as wee.
Wik as wick.
Wing as wing.
Wit as weet.
Wo as wa(r).
Y
Yam as yum.
Yan as yun.
Yang as ya(h)ng.
Tsung as tsoong,
Ts‘ung as tshoong.
Tsut as ts(h)u(r)t.
Tsiit as tsooeet.
Ts'‘iit as tshooeet.
Tsz as tsz.
Ts‘z as tshz.
Toi nearly like tooee.
T'6u nearly like thooee.
Tu as too.
Tuk as took.
Tuk as thook,
Tun as tur)n.
T‘un as thu(r)n.
Tin as tune.*
T‘iin as thune.*
Tung as toong.
T‘ung as thoong.
Tit nearly like tooeet.
Tit nearly like thooeet.
Wok as walk.
Wong as wong.
Wi as woo.
Wui as wooee.
Wan as woon.
Wit as woot
Yap as yup.
Yap as yahp.
Yat as yut
* French une.
INTRODUCTION. LXIII
Yau as y(hjow Ying as ying. Yui as nearly yooee.
Yad as ya(h)oo. Yip as yeep. | Yuk as yook.
Ye as ye(ar). , Yit as yeet. | Yun as yu(r)n.*
Yi as ye. _ Yiu as yeeoo Yin as yune.
Yik as yik. YOk as yu(r)k. Yung as yoong.
Yim as yeem. _ YOng as yu(r)ng * Yit as yueet.
Yin as yeen. | Yui as vue
* It is well nigh impossible to represent the difference between this 6 and u; but it may be of
some assistance to know that the former is pronounced with the lips open, while the lips require to
be pursed together in pronouncing the latter.
\
和
TONIG = MARKS
AND
ABBREVIATIONS USED IN THIS BOOK.
[C.] = Classifier.
[S. of p. t.] = Sign of past time.
Lit. = Literally.
* Indicates that the tone the word is marked in is different from the tone in the book
language, and generally that it is one of the variant rising tones.
+ Indicates that the pronunciation of the word as given in this book is different from that
given to it in the book language.
The figures at the end of phrases and sentences denote the Final Particle which is used in
the Chinese. The numbers correspond with the numbers of the list of Final Particles towards
the end of the book.
< = The upper even tone, the 上 平 ， as Ke, tin.
‘ — The upper rising tone, the an as 水 “shail.
> 一 The upper retiring, or receding tone, the 上 去 ， as == how?
) = The upper entering tone, the 上 入， as 德 tak
< 一 The lower even tone, the he. as A cyan,
< — The lower rising tone, the TE. as 我 ， Sngo.
2 — The lower retiring, or receding tone, the 下 去 ， as Se, fa2.
o= The middle entering tone, the 中 DM as 角 ， kok
> = The lower entering tone, the PA. as A. yit,.
THE VARIANT TONES.
: 上 平
— The variant tone of the , or upper even, as BRA Sin
a YY E
二 The variant tone of the I I ,or upper rising, as ve, sai.*
>
一 | see . a
1 一 The variant tone of the I ca or upper retiring or receding, as hs. KWO
va 二 = ay . *
一 The variant tone of the 上 DG or upper entering tone, as ant. shik,.
01 = The variant tone of the 中 A, or middle entering tone, as BR, tit o4.*
= The variant tone of the 下 平 ， or lower entering tone, as zyan.”
no
<
€ 一 The variant tone of the P 上 上， or lower rising tone, as FF. Cmo.*
5 = The variant tone of the ps. or lower retiring or receding tone, as aE, wa?*,
5 一 The variant tone of the is A. or lower entering tone, as 食 ， shik,.*
a
= The tone for ++ and also for He etc., if pronounced as one word, as ya *
2 THE NUMERALS.
THE NUMERALS.
Complicated form. Simple form. Running hand.
1. 1 毒 一
= = I
和 3 寡 = Hi
. 4 B m4 义
5 fh Hi ra)
6. 6 ae os -L.
7. 7 so = =
Bs 3 | } =
9. 9 KK 九 女
10 10 bs + It
He Bw agiege (toot 玫
” ”= Lee 1 a ne 征
13 3 RA ow BPS = or 一 二 三 &
bed LM dead
ob sfabobat ibis
a seh
SAB lillie dt
十 十 十 十 十 - -
ree. tell,
> 上 图 在 吉 + 二
SEAS ME IL |
+S |
fh hike tt SLT ST =
100 SAR 一 百 lf
yo BR) HR ih
25. 110 fie" SSG 百 一 or —A—+ =
26. ITII Sys Ss 一 百 一 十 一 县
27. 200 ada = NA
28. 300 BAG =} Wi
= 10 EF = IF
30 10,000 Se — [万
3I 100,000 栓 万 +h ; ve
32. 1,000,000 BS 4ei or 全 万 Bae As ov He (i
1. Note these contracted forms for the tens are not used alone in colloquial, but precede
some other word, as, THF SS . Sa-42 (or sa*) zis’ in,* thirty cash. When nothing follows
thirty, =+. Sam shapy should be used. All these contractions for tens when sounded very
rapidly would be considered as one word. If one chooses to consider them as such, the tone
might be called a falling tone and represented by one syllable, as above.
2. Or yat, shap, yat,, yat, shap, y? etc., very often.
THE NUMERALS. 3
THE NUMERALS.
EB. Yat,.
2. YE.
3. Sam.
ae
4. Sz
5
5. Ng.
6. Luk,.
ve Ts‘at,.
8. Pat.
9. Kat.
Io. Shap, or yat, shap).
Ti, Shap, yat,. or yat, shap, yat,.
12. Shap, yf, or yat, shap, yi.
13. Shap, (54m, or yat, shap, sam.
14. v2 shap, Often abbreviated to Ya?.
15. YE shap, yat, ‘i ya? yat,.
16. Yi shap, yi. Yee,
2 2 22
17. Sam shapy. fs LS 到 下
2 ad)
18. (5am shap, yat,. ts (oa-a° yat,.
19. Sz? shap,. A S2?-d?.
20. Ts‘at, shap, ‘kaa. ,, Ts‘at,-a? “kat.
21. Pat_shap, sz. 页 Pat -42 sz’
fo} = °
22. ‘Kaishap,luk,. ,, ‘Kaa-é? luk,.
23. Yat, pak,
24. Yat, pak, clengt yat,.
25. Pak, yat, or yat, pak, yat,.
26. Yat, pak, yat, shap, yat,
27. Yi pak,
28. oam pak,.
29. Yat, ts'in.
30. Yat, mén?.
31. Shap, mén?, or yat, shap, man?.
32. Pak, man2, or yat, pak, man2.
One.
Two.
Three.
Four.
Five.
Six.
Seven.
Eight.
Nine.
Ten, oy one ten.
Ten one, ov one ten one.
Ten two, or one ten two.
Ten three, oy one ten three
Two tens, or twenty.
Two tens one, or twenty-one.
Two tens two, or twenty-two.
Three tens, or thirty.
Three tens one, or thirty-one.
Four tens, or forty.
Seven tens nine, ov seventy-nine.
Eight tens four, or eighty-four.
Nine tens six, oy ninety-six.
One hundred.
One hundred and one.
Hundred one (ten snderstood), or one hundred
One hundred one ten one. fone.
Two hundred.
Three hundred.
One thousand.
One myriad.
Ten myriads, ov one ten myriads.
One hundred myriads.
1. This is pronounced in two ways: when spoken rapidly as if it were only one syllable,
as, sa*; but when uttered more slowly it resolves itself into two as given above.
on opposite page.
See note
LESSON I.
mn mr rn mn rn mn nm hn
oT AR 9
1g.
20.
21.
22.
23.
24.
25.
26.
29;
28.
29.
30.
31.
32.
Sr 190, SSO ae Nt
LESSON I.—Domestic.
Bring a cup of tea.
Serve dinner (ov any meal).
Call the house-coolie.
I want to bathe.
There is no water.
Have you had your rice? Thanks, I have.
No; I have not.
Is there any beef? There is no beef.
There is mutton.
The bread is sour.
. Ah! is it?
Bring some hot water.
I don't want wine.
The cook hasn't come back yet.
Is there any milk ?
There is a little.
Is it good ?
It is not the very best, it is not very good,
only middling.
Put it there.
Those are fowls’ eggs.
They are bad ; they are spoilt.
How is that? It is very strange.
Is this good to eat? Itis. Thanks.
Are there any fowls?
and hens.
What is this? Give me some.
There are capons
Thank you. Is there any more?
There is. The cook has come.
Who is he? Does he smoke ?
I don’t know certainly. Probably he does.
The boy has gone out to buy vegetables, — and
meat.
Has he bought pork or vegetables ?
He is a Chinese, and comes from Fat-shan.
aoe ‘SF DEB, fame,
Line AIF ALS,
有 羊肉 呀 、
Bi Be
ni, 40
Fam UE CE,
好 喇 好 证
NE LA+-SP (or 2B Kh, PARES
中 中 哟 叭 .
HK (07 CFE J BLE PR,
{AWAY (238 EP
唔 好 咯 ; TARO,
Bite Oe, KEL ABER,
BiB, HEANY IE BOF,
ASE TIDE, “AL SARFE 7 SHEERS
Bem) £1 BFE, ABM FR OR,
多 谢 你 咯 、 重 有 丰 呢
em 火 头 咯咯 、
(BA, TRE
Ie PEERS NCA,
事 仔 出 街 买 通 呀
TER FSA, WEE,
伍 你 唐人 、 咏 佛山 咯 嘱
LESSON I. 5
LESSON I.—Domestic.
上
cNing poi cha clat.
2. SH& ts'an 14.2
3. Kia? “kwan-tim? (or tim™*) 。 dai.
4. "Ngo yi? “sat an lok...
5. {Mo Sshoii po” [sh 让 kj lok。
6. Shik,* fan2 cm ,ts‘ang 2? <M- kot lok,
7 M cts’ ang shik,. [ The iene does not
hemes here: 和 (yuk, lok,.
8. SYat cngat- yuk, “md .ni?e SMa cngat-
£Yati cyang- yuk, 2
ro. Min2- - pat sin lok.
11, ,O! Hai? me?
12: “Ning tit yit, “shou cai.
¢€ oa
tsaa a”.
13. "Ngo, a of
I4. Ts52--ch'iir me 他 cts'ang (fan cai a
5. Syaa cngait Snat md A 四
IT6，SYat ie lok,
17. “Ho a er a?
18. <M hai? shap, (fan (or chi? ) ‘ho;
cm hai?
Set “hd; DR chung-tEGD* chek
19. (Chai (or fone” tsoi= 2) ko shi? lok...
20. Ko? ott hai? ckal- -tan5* a.
a1. ,M ‘hd lok, ; ; hai? ch‘at? ke’.
22. tm “kai ni ?2 “Ha ch' ut, ¢k'éi ke? lok
23. SHO shik, Sma? “Ho Fae a? 2M (koi “a
24. SYaa ckai (or ar Smo “nia “yan sin’-
chai (or kai), Svat chat [No change in
tone here ]-,n4 Mok. (14.2
25. Ni-,ti hai? mia-sye 。 ni?z “PEi ti sngo
Chung? Saa Smo cnir2
‘Fo-zt' aa* clai lok.
28. §K‘oi hai? ami; wane Ki shik,.- yin
cme? ?2
29. <M Sg -tak, shat, lok,.
(kai fon? kai) § =mai be
26. (re tse” £néi lok,
27: Chung? cyat oti.
P‘a? hai? Syaa.
30. Sz2-“tsai ch’ ‘at, oP
31. Six Of hai? cma ch yuk,, PE ts‘or epi ?2
“hai Fat). shan
32. ett hai? cT ‘ong cyan,
clai ke).
Bring cup tea come.
Get-up meal.2
Call house-coolie (or shop-coolie) come.
I want wash body.32
No water.60
Ate rice not yet eh ?2
Not yet eat.
Beg-pardon,32, eaten.32
(No beef.32
Have beef (lit. ox, or cow meat) not eh ?53
Have mutton (lit. sheep meat).2
Bread sour.32
Ah! ‘tis is-it ?39
Bring some hot water come.
I not want wine.2
Cook not yet back come 2
Have cow's milk not eh ?z
Have little.32
Good not good eh ?2
Not is ten parts (or very) good (or best); not is
very good; middling only.7
Place (or place on) that place.32
Those are fowls' eggs.2
Not good ;32 are stinking.15
How explain eh ?53 Very extraordinary.15 32
Good eat isn’t-it ?22 Good eat.2 Not proper.2
Have fowls not eh?s3 Have capons, have
hens.32
This is what-thing eh ?53 Give some me.2!
Many thanks to-you.2 More have no eh ?53
Besides have some. Cook come.32
He is what man? He smokes eh ?39
Not know certainly.32 Fear (it) is (that he) does.
Boy gone-out street buy viands.2
He has bought pork, or vegetables eh ?53
He is Tong man (i.e. Chinese); from Fat-shan
come.15
1. This word is uniformly spelled i in this book, but it must be remembered that it is often
pronounced ; as well.
2. These finals are in either the bE
or variant of that tone, the highest tone of all,
according to the sense or meaning to be conveyed, or emphasis shown.
3. This isa very common contraction of 4, mat,, in colloquial.
LESSON II.
+
19. OOS Oe Be WS
et
# Oo ns FO
RD He we mm ow ow
Ot A 8 oS Oy iG
N
nT
22,
23.
24.
25.
26.
27%,
28.
29.
30.
31.
32.
. More than ten.
LESSON II.—General.
Come here.
Who has come? Who is it ?
No one has come.
Who is that ?
Why don't you come?
Idon't know. How should I know? (man.
He is nota good man. He is a very bad
Tell him to go away.
He has gone. He went long ago.
Close the door, don’t fasten it.
Open the door. Why did you lock it?
. Tell the Amah to come to me.
Come quickly ; the quicker the better.
Where's the cookie; has he come?
Come to-morrow, or the day after
to-morrow.
There is only a very little.
It’s good is it? He says so.
What does he say? Tell me.
Hesayshedoesn't wishtocome. [withme.
Explain to him that he must certainly go
How many persons are there, old and
{young ?
Altogether there are sixty men.
Are there any children ?
There is a boy.
Is that a boy, or a girl?
He is in my employ.
Who is your master ?
Heisanative of the place, that isa Cantonese.
He is not a fellow-villager of yours.
Where does he live?
A long way from here.
Do you go by land, or by water ?
LOVE AF, Bk 13, PRE ORE,
4s NUBUS, TSE NT, « BEAEINT,
AY AUB VAT APF or AL SBE I,
Ml 1 £% B, ABE, *
唔 知 呀 .我 点 知 呀 、
US oat 伍 傈 好 恶人 咱
Lake,
伍 去 咽 咯 .去 好 耐 咯 、
棒 埋 门 . 咪 冉 阿 、
开门 呀 ,做 世 你 镇 呢 、
WS} ae HSS Fa FRR,
mae, ae RE,
eS JE, Wee Or
a ee
AY ry yy
JGR, 13 GUNA,
(Hsé-4 Et, AeA,
(Baez HE
解 明 温 但 区. 是 必要 同 我 去 、
Ne ami CAH, A EZ ADE,
ee eon te
gab A CLA,
ALB iF Ave,
UTE (ov etl) TF,
MBL EBLE AAAI,
(EMAAR EAT BK,
3 4S RS AE,
BABAK A, BIA de AME
EARN
TENA ee FEW,
fe lax, Fa BF SR,
TT ENB TE A EE,
1. Or as in No. 2.
2. He H ting yat, very often also means any indefinite time in the future.
LESSON II. 7
21.
22.
23.
24.
25.
26.
27.
28.
29.
30.
31.
32.
LESSON II.—General.
cLai ni shi? 4’
ni ?2
Mi zyan™ ¢ lai a”
Tso2-mat, cnki cm lai
[ko” Az
(Mi-gshoii* a? oP in
ta. cyan ¢ ‘lai aor a SMe gan ca?
or SMO in ko? a?
“Ko ko? hai? mi pan" cn? ?2
<M chi v tNgo “tim chi 和 ?
5 da ha 好 ‘hd oan @ Skea ha
Kit? Skea Schre lok, (‘ha ok, 人 yan ka?
SK‘8i hoiw?-Scho lok, Hoi? *hd noz
‘Yim emai cman, Smai wes 4.2 [lok。
2
Hoi Spee a Tsé?-mat Snéi so nl? ?2
<
Kia? A?-CME clai kin? Sngo (142
Fai- oti dai: a far yiit, “hd lok.
cKwin tim?* clai méi2 cts! sie 2?
vi ing na aL ae ~yat, dai, 14,2 hau2-
ab cat td “ha (a? (or ot? tso? tak,
fics “shia Shia dex &).
(He 14° Sma? SK'di hai? “kom we.
Skea wa? mi Sye? “Kong kwo? Sngo
AS engt as
{kK bi wae _m “s6ng clai lok,
“Kas cming kwo? Sk'dii Aa engt shi*-pit,
yia’ ct'ung Sngo hoi?
<M lun2 tai sai? a “kéi cto zyan* qn? ?2
SYat Shap? “kéi ko’, or vai shap, clengt
ko? ae
Ham?-péng?:-lang? Syaat luk yshap, cyan
or aber ko? cyaa cto.
an [smo ni ?2
£yaa sai? (or more oe sam)- oman- tsai.
£Yaii ko? (or yat, ko”) “tsaf lok..
“Ko ko? hai? “teal, a cn5ii* ni? ?2
kai Shai $ oe shi? ‘ta- kung ke?
Pin ko” haf? £néi sz2- zt ai cn ?2
et haf? ‘pan te? cyan, tsik, hai?
qsheng*t gan lok... {ke.?
SKsii i hai? erang Snéf tung héng-
Skea Shai opin shi? chi? ni ?z
<Léi es shi? cae “ho Syiin lok...
er 162 hoi’, pér? tap, cshiin hai? cni ?2
Come this Place.2? Why you not come eh ?53
{eh ?ix
Who eh?! Which one
No man come,! oy no man,! ov no which [C.].1
What man come eh?!
That [C.] is what man eh ?53
Not know.2 I how know eh ?2 (man.t+
He is not good man.2
Tell him to-be-off.32
He gone [s. of p. t.].32. Gone very long.32
Close to door, don’t fasten it.1
He is very wicked.
Open door.2? Why you lock eh ?53
Call Amah [this also means grandmother if in
lower even tone, as A’ cma] come see me.2I
Quickly come: still quicker still better.32
House (or shop) coolie eh;53 come not yet eh ?2
To-morrow come.2! Day-after-to-morrow come
also good,! (or also do cant).
Have little little only.7
Good ?23 37 He does so say.
He says what thing? Tell over to-me to-
hear.21
He says not wish come.32
Explain clearly to him to-hear certainly must
with me go. {men eh ?53
| No matter (whether) big small have how many
Have ten odd [C.], oy have ten plus [C.],32
oy ten [C.] have more.
In-all have sixty men.32
Have children not eh ?53
Have [C.] (or one [C.]) boy.32
That [C.] is boy, or girl eh ?53
He at my place works.15
Which [C.] is your master eh ?53
He is native soil man, that is city man.32
He not is with you together villager.15
He at what place lives eh ?53
Separated-from this place have very far.32
By road go, or on ship go eh ?53
I.
2. These finals may be either in the
This word is pronounced pe when spoken rapidly.
再 or in the variant tone, higher than the EA
for example, the sentence may be Tso? mat, Snéf cm lai ci? or Tso? mat, Snéi cm laf oni? accord-
ing to the sense or emphasis to be conveyed.
LESSON | Ill.
. I want to go out in the afternoon.
. I am in a perspiration.
LESSON III.—General.
What o'clock is it ?
O! it's half-past ten.
Come back at four o’clock.
Tell him to wait. Wait.
Come by-and-bye.
He says you must wait.
When are you going out?
It’s very hot to-day.
It's not very hot.
It was rather hot yesterday as well.
. To-day is hotter than yesterday.
Next month will be cold.
To-morrow is the end of the month.
It was very cold last night.
Is this a long, or short month?
There was a typhoon some days ago.
Is there any wind now?
It’s raining now. It's only a slight shower.
Bring me an umbrella. There is no need.
It rains heavily in summer (or hot weather).
(chair.
. Call the coolies to come and carry the
. Are there any horses here?
I think they are not particularly good. I
fancy they are pretty good.
The sun is intensely hot to-day There
are no clouds hiding it.
It's too hot I dare not go out in the day-
Call some one to pull the punkah. ftime.
You needn't pull it. You have no strength.
It's only a trifling matter. It’s no matter.
. I'mafraid I shall catch cold. I feel very
cold.
It’s very hard
work to take a walk when it is so hot.
. The climate does not suit me.
5 BA Se Oe,
上 啊 、 十 点 衬 咯 、
Py ana,
BHBSSIp, Se—WpeRy,
SIP
TG (REESE,
Henge ty Bae,
AAA ShO,
rareawrect
HE Hl aie Hee
As ASHE AK,
45 — TH (CR) ee
Be ee
WE S66 Eee,
WEA A AA we,
Ee
iin Re - Iiel FIWE,,
Wie fie Pes NS SE ANEE ase ON.
FRAC EAE, 唔 使 呀
Ket WEA ISM.
BEING,
ML HepB (or tng Ke) ER HA,
Ee #5 TBE,
Be fle SAF, SR A
PU HAF Th, 77 SSS FEM,
Po OE Fe A WE 47 ,
PBL ATER ak ov EE) hit Fr
CEREALS, “RAT FY,
pete
Pea BaP, Fe WAR,
oe a ae
WEAK LIE ARS,
LESSON
Ill. 9
LESSON III.—General.
Gree Se,
Kéi ‘tim chung cni ? 2
<O， cae tim pits ” lok.
$2? Stim fan (lai (la. 2 (Sha*) 14, 2
22 ¢
Kid” *k‘6u “tang Sha “Tang yat, Sha (or
“Tang ha (or ona) clai.
Cig ae sec 3
=K'oi wa> =néi yia “tang a.
Gazer Cee 可
=Néi “kéi-.shi* ch' eae Rea cites
2 ut, (kai (or oki) pni?2
ee “ha yit, 0
Tsok 2-yat> uto ha? “kei yit, 2 a2
M ha? shap, 。 fan a) ka?
_Kam- yaty Toten pronounced mat 9) yit, kwo?
tsok aay (or cts'am- ent) lok.
Tai. -yi2-ko? yit, (hai?)? Sang lo aS
<Néi m shai “chi oe
< Ving (or (T° ing)- -yaty yiit, Sméi 1a
Tsok, (often pronounced cts'am) Sman
chan ching” “lang lo
Niko? yit, tar, per? Ya ‘sit qa? 22
Sin ter Sin) Se yat, “ta _fung-kai?.
Sika Syat fung § -ma ni 本 [che 2
oui rut lok, oy lo”. Lok, ea mei
“Ning “pa sche ‘pat Sngo. <M “shai “we
'T: in yit, iets, taz Sy a lok, oka).
Sa hai-chat yia? ch: at, ai (or better
Kid? ct'of kia?» © 16 (or Kia “fi dai ctoi
¢
Pins shi? Syaa Sma Smé ni ?2 kia*.
SNgo ‘kwa cm -to ‘ho kwa? _To “kei
“ho kwa?. Evan 。 che-cha2 lok,.
Yit, -二 aa” _kam-yat, cas £ ae Sb
Yit, hwo”? - tau Sago 5 yat,-<t' aa* cm ‘kom
changt kai (or Mai). (shin? a.
Kia? evan ‘lai (or as <chie, cfung-
a.z {Nei Sma lik, A 2
(Han 1 sz? che2: Smo a ao lok
ingo fong ‘lang (isan & Ngo kin’
“ha “lang @° a
Ch' ut, -hon? lok... Kom’? yit, -hangt (kai
io better a) kin’ ‘hd cana lok,
> €
Ni shi? ‘shéa ‘td am hop, Sngo lo’.
What stroke clock, eh ?53
Ah! Ten stroke half. 32
Four o'clock back come.21
Tell him wait little. Wait a little.21
Wait a-bit come.
He says you must wait.2
You what-time go-out street eh ?53
To-day very hot.56
Not is ten parts hot.14
' Yesterday also was somewhat hot.1
To-day hotter than yesterday. 32
Next (or another) [C.]month (will be) cold.31
To-morrow month end.22
Last night truly really cold.31
This month large, or month small, eh ?53
Before (or a number of days ago) several days,
Now have wind not, eh ?53__— (strike typhoon.
This-time fall rain.31 Fall rain fine only.7
Bring (C.) umbrella give me. Not need.2
Weather hot falls great rain.32
I afternoon want-to go-out street. [carry chair.
Call carry chair fellows (or chair bearers) come
This place have horse not, eh ?53
I think not very good probably.18 Also pretty
good I-think.18
Sun to-day very fierce. No clouds hide.32
Hot over-much I daytime not dare walk streets.
Call man come pull punkah.2
You not need pull.z You no strength.r
Trifling matter only 7 ; no importance.32
I fear cold catch.2 I feel very cold.2
Perspire.32 So hot walk streets feel very dis-
tressing. 32
This place water soil not agree me. 32
I.
2.
3.
See note to Lessons I and II.
Let the learner remember that this final ’ is scarcely heard.
The verb may, or may not be used, and so in similar sentences throughout the book.
IO
LESSON IV.
LESSON IV.—General.
1. What is this ?
呢 响 任 世 野 呢 、
2. This is butter. wewty (% 下 HR,
3. Is there any fruit ? A FA 呀 、
4. There are only two kinds. 7A WERE 二
5. Are there not several kinds? ae ASR,
6. No: there are plantains and pine-apples. A, A EA RE.
7. Are there no other kinds ? 石 第 二 IE,
8. There are no other kinds. 右 第 二 檬 隆 、
9. me cee ae you for a light He KU, ne BY i fe (le 火 我 、
10. Where did this letter come from ? DEANE EBRE,
ir. From the Tak-kee hong. WR aL Tere,
12. Is there any answer ? A 回 H 5 TF,
13. There is no answer. Aj | Ba
14. Bring me a chair. debater age,
15. Put it on the table. FEE ED, [ Way SRR ;
16. Nonsense! Why are you so silly ? 1K, $43, ROMY, eS 整 成 个
I7， 工 am only jesting. Do you think it Shite 笑话 哮 、 您 见怪 只 .
18. Bring mea pen and ink. (strange? | Fp EAE Va AR
1g. I think there is a pencil up stairs. 楼 上 (or 楼 有 支 牧 唾
20. Is there anyone down stairs? Go down pe AA He, YEE WAP,
21. This house has seven rooms. {and see. We, fel BALA 呀 、
22. Has it a garden? Where is the gardener ? 有 花园 右 呢 、 花王 WSR
23. It has a small garden. AEE.
24. Where is your master? He is out. Se Ave, nag esp cs
25. How long has he been gone ? ee
26. When will he be back ? enw RH We,
27. He didn't say. {5 CFT ae Fee IR (or Ataf. )
28. Is your mistress at home? BH UE ( (or 女 东 家 2) WS ih
(master.1 a WE,
29. She is not here; she went out with my 12 HR {RIA Se 出 街 咯 、
30. Go with me to find him. I can't go. FFF BR), 我 唔 去 得 叮 、
3r. Ican't. I’m busy. I have no time. 喇 得 呀 、 Su, Ass,
33. Come again to-night. Don't come so late. ANS ULB), rae: POBEPD
1. The first of these sentences is what a woman would say; the second, what a man
would say.
2. The second is a more polite form, though the first is most commonly used.
LESS
ON IV. II
H
we woe
17.
18,
1g.
20.
21.
22.
23.
24.
25.
26.
27.
28.
29.
30.
31.
32.
LESSON IV.—General.
ee 2 .¢ .
Ni- ti hai? =ye ni??
(Ni emi *ye 。
ee haf? cngat-,yat po
£Yai ‘kwo-‘tsz $m 4?
“Yaa Stong yong? cche.
<5M hai? Syaa “kéi yong? me
SMod, yaa utsie、 Syat po- <lo*
SMe ta 和 -yi yong? «me? oa
“Mo tai-yi2 yong? lok, [Sngo,
<Ning “fo (lai. M- koi Snéi tse” ko? “fo
Ni _fung-sun’ Shai Bon shi? clai mi ze
“Hai Tak,-ké? hong* clai ke”.
£Yau cwii yam cma a”?
SMO <wai-yam lo?
Ning chong ‘yi “péi Sngo.
(Chai tso2 toi min>* (or,t'oi without min>’).
_Ts‘oi! Tsd?-mat, Snéi kom? (shoii 4? *
_Ts'ai ! “ching Shengt ko?- ti shi yong’.*3
SNgo ‘kong sit? w4* che’. {Néi kin?
kwar? cme ?2
Ning pat,, mak, lai “péi Sngo (a?
_Lait-shong? (or zlat*) Syat chi pat, kwa?
_Lait-ha? Svat cyan Smo cal ? Lok, how”
“taf Sha.
(Ni (kan uk, fyaa ts‘at, (kan -fong* a
*Yaa (fa-yiint Smo oni? ? Fa (or fa)
<wong “hai opin shi? ?
£Yaii ko? sai? fa-zyiin® 4
S2?-.t'ai* cai ? Ch ut, (kai lo?. [ni ?3
Sx 6 ch'ut, kai (or kai) Syati ckef noi? *
“Kei zshi* fan claf cui ?2
Kei yau? Smo wa2 “kéi gui* fan claf po
(or Smo wa?),
‘Noii-sz?- rat (or better ‘noii- tung- ka)
“hai shi’, cm “hai shii’, cDi ?
<M “hat shii2; Ske-dii tung tung kA ch'ut
© kai (or (kat) lok. ‘ :
Ma Sngo how? Swan “ksi a? SNgo cm
héi tak, (4.
<M tak, 4”: $Yaisz? 4. Mtak,-hdn 4.”
_Kam-man* yat? lai (14. <Mai kom? ye?
dai a”
*I， It is better to keep to the original tone
3.
The first sentence is what a woman would say ;
This is what thing, eh ? 5%
This is butter (Jit. cow's oil). 6°
Have fruit not, eh? 2
Have two kinds only. 7
Not is have several kinds, is-it-not ? ¥9 0 Is it
not that there are several kinds?
No, have plantains, have pineapples.
No second kind, eh ? 39
No second kind. 32
Trouble you lend a light to-
{me.
Bring fire come.
This [C.] letter from what place come, eh? 53
From Tak-kéi hong come. 15
Have answer not, eh ? 2
No answer. 31
Bring (C.] chair give me.
Place on table face.
Nonsense! Why you so silly, eh? 4
Nonsense! Make complete thatsilly style!
I speak laughing words only.* You perceive
strange, eh? 39
Bring pencil, ink come give me. ?1
Upstairs have [C.] pencil I-think.1§
Downstairs have man not, eh? Down go see
a-bit.
This [C.] house has seven (C.] rooms.”
Have flower-garden not, eh ?53 Flower king at
what place?
Have a small flower-garden.?
Master, eh ?53 Gone-out street.31
He go-out street have how long, eh 754
What time back come, eh ?53
He even not say what time back come ®° (or
not say).
Mistress at place, not at place, eh ?53
Not at place; she with master go-out street.°*
With me go find (or look for) him.21 I not go
can. 1
Not can.“ Have business. Not have leisure.
To-night again come.?t Don’t so late come.2
2. See note on previous pages.
the second what a man would say.
here.
T2
LESSON V.
LESSON V.
What does he say? [hard up for money.
2. Hesays he has no money. He says he is
3. Did he say that? Give him some.
4. Can you read?
5. Ican'tread. Neither canI write.
6. Ask the teacher to come.
7. What is yoursurname? (Jo an inferior)
What is your surname ?
8. My surname is Wong.
g. Can you speak Chinese ?
to. Ican. What's your name?
1x. My name is A-Luk.
12. He is an Englishman.
13. You are a native of the place.
14. He is an American.
15. How many Chinese are there?
16. Do you like this?
17. Do you like being here?
18. Ido. It would be well to be here always.
19. Tell him to go back. He cannot come.
20. Seizethat man. If you don't, he will run off.
21. What has he been doing? oy What does
22. Heisa thief. [he do?
23. What has he stolen? Is it of value?
24. He has not stolen anything yet.
25. Has he struck anybody? What did he
strike with ?
26. With his hand; he is avery dangerous man.
27. He wanted to snatch that pair of bracelets.
28. Take him to prison. {rattan.
29. Afterwards give him twenty blows with a
30. Only let him go when he has been beaten.
31. He ought to be sentenced to two weeks’
imprisonment.
32. Warn him not to do it again. If he does,
he will be more severely punished.
—General.
(hat Bre,
“1 SU, G8 oR,
{ERNE Bey Bob,
你 识字 喇 识 叮 、
NE oP, Be CEE eR,
CE Ben,
HEP, 你 姓 世 呢 、
AD HER, or 姓 黄 .
pve a ESE DEVE OE,
Pa. Ha Bt 3 Zee
我 名 时 (做 pe eee
第 保 英 国人 区
你 任 本 地 人 咯 、 [ 旗 人 、
RRA A, oy (more commonly ) 花
RZ.
中 意 呢 响 唔 中意 川
你 中 意 叹 呢 处 唔 中 意 呢 、
中 意 阿 .时 时 吸 处 都 好 呀
NHB EE 伍 喇 做 得 哈
eel ta Ah ES eR Ew.
tk DEPT,
TEAR REAR, (or TE ER BERS, ),
信人 得 此 时 只 (ii SRR fa we,
Pe thy Al (和 到 05 BH,
AAT AAT WE, CAE ts EF ATOR,
PEF My, 15 aE vee,
(Eee TAS,
Fir BE as Ew,
BEREAN (B—+1K,
STU EAR,
eB AE Bh EEE,
A RUA AB (or TACT BY), EF
CA FE, GTN ES,
I.
This is the correct character, but the first represents the correct tone.
LESSON V.
13
Xr TO SNH
31.
32.
4
LESSON V.—General.
Koi wa? emi Se cal? 22
SMo ingans wo?. ‘Ngan. long ‘kan wo,
© di hai? “kom we me ?? Pei ti dil
(142 :
£Néi shik | tsz2 cm shik, 422 & tim.
= shik, 10? . ise vate cn ‘nia Sse tsz?
Ts. cnet uae Shangt < lai (ja. 7
Ko sing’ 2 > Nei sing? mat, ni i
Sia sing? Wong, or Sing? < Wong.
a
ee Seiad
Nei Swati kong <1’ ong wa,>* cm Swai ni?
Swai a? Snéf kit? (tsd?) mat, -meng*t
ni? (kid? tsd? A?-Luk,.
SNgo zmeng*t kia? (tsd2)A? ae or ‘Ngo
a di hai? ving kw ok, cyan 2
éi hai? © pan te 人 ean lok.
"Koa hai? “Mei Kw ok, Yan, or Fa gket*
(or ordinary tone) cyan.
£Yaa ‘kei uto ¢T'ong- cyan a?
SNéi cchungy 2 eee cm <chung-yi? a?
{Nei chung-yi
oH cee aaa ?
hai ui g-
cmi shi < chung
yi? ni 22
<Chung-yi? (4.2 (Shi-,shi Shai shi” td
‘he 有 os (tak, lai.
Kit koa (fan hav? 12. Sk-6ii fu tso2-
Lai CEo ko
cyan (or zyan*) (4? Ml hai,
{6a tsat2 “tsaa lok,.
“Ka tsd2 emiye 。
SRK'56 tsoz ts， ak, lok ;
{lok | )
- or 《Ki hai? ts‘ Ak,
Ski ct aa mi sye ， ni ?2 Hai? chik, ie
ne cm chik, ni ia
<M-ct sang can- to Sye a’.
{Yai “ta <yan,£mé cni 22 Hai? Sshai mat,
Sye (laf ‘ta ni? _[ke?.
“Shai ‘shai lok 。 ‘K'6ii ‘ho shai”--hung
SK'6i Sséng ts， “ang ko? tai? ak*, lok.
Lat “kaa how? ct， sot eam a
Hate, lof cta Sk'8ii yP shay we ang.*
“T4 Scho [s. of p. t.] chi? fhe fong? *k‘éii
ch’ ut, hdii? lok . (pat? @
Ying-。 kot pan2 S68 Sts‘ot Song k o? ‘lai
King .ba 和 6
chai 7). Yok, hai? tsoi”
ee a.
fe}
Smai chai’ kwo’, 他 Smai
tsof> chai,”
tsai? cka Schungt yim pan? lok.,
He says what thing, eh ? 53
No money he-says.®5 Money pressing he-says.65
He did so say, eh ?39 Give some him.?1
You know characters not know, eh ?1
Not know.31 [ besides not understand to-write
Invite Teacher come.21 {character moreover.
Exalted surname,eh ?2 Your surname what,eh?53
Diminutive surname Wong, of Surname Wong.
You can speak Chinese words, not can, eh ?55
Can ;1 you called (to-be) what name, eh ? 53
My name is-called A-Luk, or 1am-called A-Luk.
He is English nation man.+
You are native soil man.3?
He is American country man, or Flowery Flag
man.
Have how many Chinese, eh ?2
You like this, not-like, eh ?2
You like being-at this place, not like, eh 253
Like.1 Always in (this) place also good.2
Call him back go.22
Arrest that man.21!
He not do can come.
If not, he will-just run.32
He does what thing, eh ?1
He is thief.#2
Hesteal what thing, eh 258
not worth, eh ?53
Is worth money, "5
Not-yet stolen anything.
Have strike man, not, eh?53 Have use what
thing in-order-to strike, eh ?53
Use hands.32
He wished snatch that pair bracelets.32
He very violent.15
Pull him away sit prison 21
Afterwards beat him twenty rattans.
Beat finished only good loose him out go.32
Ought sentenced him sit two [C.] weeks prison.?
Warn him not do again (or not again do). Ifdoes
again do, then add heavily severely
punish.*”
(HE,
tj LESSON VI.
LESSON VI.—Relationships.
1, Who are you? trthts Awe,
2. He is my father. (RRR,
3. Have you a mother? CRA EFEATVE,
4. When did you marry ? Rae Re
5. More than ten years ago. 十 到 年 ， or AE BE
6. Have you any children ? ARF AATF,
7. Ihave several daughters, but no sons AEX, x
8. How old is the eldest ? 至 太 ( 至 大 个 ， or vB) AHEKUeE,
g. She is between ten and twenty. Bs,
10. Is she married ? oa (7 i) 了 唔 便 呵 ， 出 门 AWE,
11. How many brothers have you? NAHE TH AWE,
1z. One elder brother, one younger. — AK fE, 一 个
13. Have you any sisters? HEATHE,
14. I have one elder sister and one younger. 一 个 型 姐 、 一 个 亚 妹 .
15. Are you married ? 你 EERE WE,
16. Not yet. Ke (or Ne) BAM
17. I cannot say certainly when I sHall marry. FRESE EE .
18. My wife is in the house. HANK (or 内 人 ) We Ee BS
19. Oh! you will get married next year 你 出 ae BRE ie whl i
20. Why is your child crying ? 做 蕊 你 个 细 仗 仔 喊 呢 ，
21. Heis hungry，Perhaps he is thirsty as well {B ALBA ; : 或 HL ESATA
22. Give him something to eat, and to drink. (BES AE AES BRE,
23. Callthenursetocarry him Go with him
for a walk. at eT, 去 同 便 行 街 .
24. He is unwilling to come. Never mind Bg, fF) AB Be.
whether he is willing or not.
25. She has no husband; she is a widow. EHIEA (or 男 人 ) ) OBE, i ERE
26. A grandson and granddaughter live with — Ak. RAR IBE,
her.
27. This is my nephew. 呢 个 低 我 暨 万 。
28. Is he a native of the place ? {EB &AC ah A fue,
29. Why does he come here ? 伍 Hx 4, Rene EWE,
30.
31.
32.
He has come to buy things for his grand-
father.
When is he going back? Do you know?
In two or three days with his cousin.
i
1B ial he AR SF,
VE, CeO IP,
ice sk ss
w+ ww
LESSON VI. 15
LESSON VI.
SNei hai? oe ead er 2
Sk ‘6a hai Sngo 35-tatf2 lok。
SNéi as §10-mo* § vine Di ? 2 [ni ?2
SNei “kéi * -shfx ts'6i2 (a? ts‘ ant sae
rie “kéi chin, or shap> oe “ya to lo”
SYat ctsaf bi (or £nda),Smd a? i
yaa ‘kei ko? ‘noii* (or £ndi), Smo ‘Stsai.
ta" ni
Chi?-tai? jr chi?-tai? ko’,
int
w ke?) yaa
(Xam cnin Svat shap, “kes soi”
Ke - “cho (or aa. cM cts'ang 。 么 ?2 Ch' ut,
gmp me 他 Di 22
Ser £ Lins “és of ¢ Bing ta a 2
ae ko? tai2-“lo, yat, ko? sai? “lo.
Syaa ‘tsz-mou2 Smo Ai? 2 rA?-mai?).
Yat, ko’ A?-‘tse, yat, ko? A?-mai?* (or
‘Néi * (or ts'6w) So- “Pe méi?
fts‘ou* lok |
med ts" ang, (or cm < ts‘ang, or emeng})
ts‘ou*
(Ske.
“haf uky-
) (often pro-
(ni 22
ts‘oi
cts'ang， ni? 22
{Ngo , m wa? tak, ting? “és hf
(or ts'ou2) < ta an. 1
SNgo Snaii zyan* Me noi *eyan)
£Néi ch’ ut,
0 “tgs 0) S15. cP'O 。 1a.
chin ts’ bi? “(or ts‘oi”
Tso?-mat, ‘néi ko” sai man-‘tsai ham?
Sci St'o-ngoz lo”
‘kengt-hot, tim, a lo.
“pei Sye “koi ee
Wak,-° che ya 全 hai?
“Pei Sve 和 6 ‘yam
Kia? Snai- ma dai § Sp'd Ski Hai? <t'ung
a
eat changt (kat (or oval.
Ml “ta-ei Skat
Start cm tene -ai
“nang m ‘hang.
Sot Smo 510- a (or ¢ nam zyan *) ke’:
Sti hai? Skwé-£md-, zP'0."
Yat, ko?
sun, yat, ko?
Snéii, but the other is ripe ct'ang Sk ii
siin-Sndit’ i
d “(or sun
Ni ko? bat Sngo chat,” (a2 fchii2
fc: dit hai Spin- téi2. Leyan Sa haf? cai? 2
{Ki tso?-mat, cai, ni shi’ ae 2 2
[Kd dai ct ing A. ceang § =mai ra
iS c@resit Sees zshi* fan hoi? ni? SNei chi
cm 。 chi “p ? [ary ton (fan hoi’ lo”
(Sam “tong yat, ct ung “pit, hing (or ovdin-
—Relationships.
You are what man, eh ?53
He is my father.39
You have mother, not, eh ?53
You what time marry, eh ?53
Ten odd years, vr ten years have more.31
Have sons daughters, not, eh ?2
Have several [C.] daughters, no sons.
[eh ?53
Greatest (or greatest C. or one) have how big
This year have ten odd years.
Married, not yet, eh? Gone-out-of doors, not-
yet, eh 253.
You have how many brothers, eh ?53 [brother.
One [C.] elder brother, one [C.] younger
Have sisters, not, eh ?53
One [C.] elder-sister, one [C.] younger-sister.
You married wife, not yet, eh ?53
Not yet (oy not yet or not-yet) married.39
I not say can certain what time marry.
My wife (/it. woman, oy person within) in house.
You coming year marry wife.21
Why your [C.] child cries, eh?53.
He hungry.31 Perhaps also is thirsty besides.
Give things him eat. Give thing him drink.3o.
Call nurse come carry him. Go with him walk
streets.
He not willing come. Not mind he willing, not
willing.
She no husband (07 man) 15; she is widow.
{her live.
One [C.] grandson, one[C.] granddaughter with
This is my nephew.1
He is native, not is, eh ?53
He why comes this place, eh ?53
He comes for grandfather buy things.
He what time back go, eh ?53 You know, not
know, eh ?2 (back go.3r
Three two days with cousin (of different surname)
1. This is a more polite form than the above.
16
LESSON VII.
im
AR ££ Ww NR oO
wo Ww WwW NH KH KH KY DY WBN KV WD Ww
Se 6S &Y FGFS SES Sas
oN AH ew Rm
LESSON VII.—Opposites.
This man is very tall and large.
I am shorter than he.
That cow is fat.
This sheep is thin.
This string is too long.
The thread is too short; it is not enough.
This is a very large house. (on it.
The road is so narrow you cannot walk
This chair is strong.
This table is very shaky.
. He is very strong.
J am weaker than he.
This table-cloth is wet.
Dry it in the sun, and bring it back.
This rock is very hard.
You must boil this meat till it is soft.
Your hands are dirty. (clean.
It would be best for you to wash them
I want hot water.
I do not want cold water.
. The sea is very deep. How deep is it?
. Rivers are more shallow than seas.
It is very far by water.
By land it is not as far by half.
Those plaintains are not ripe yet.
‘These coolie oranges are too unripe.
I don’t want those eggs boiled so hard.
I want to eat the oysters raw
There are a great many water-buffaloes.
. There are very few goats.
. Heisa very clever man.
. You are very stupid.
呢 个 人 好 高 大 路 .
4728 TAP,
nip} 4 AE.
We AE HG EIS,
呢 休 多 长 过 BB,
Bie Aa AE 45 ODEs ER,
Pe Bt J
呢 休 路 哇 窗 喇 行 得 咯 .
DEES HEE,
De nete are.
EY ep a
eR BE,
were te th.
ulead uaa
ei Ease
PRES EIDE RY AI, " BEM)
AIR BENS BIS
aL ae
你
REM,
FB SOR APR,
Kieu ROP, A AEREPR,
in BS hg,
TK BR bef Sa
pee aes
{lth 26 Fea
Demy HAE By.
MY ERPS PMS fot,
ie Fe ee
有 好 多 水 午 .
HE AE
Buea DION,
UVP Es BENE,
1. This word may be omitted or not.
LESSON VII.
17
a)
nN
LESSON VII.—Opposites.
Ni- ie cyan “hd (ke tare po’. |
"Ngo Sai kwo? koa lok.
"Ko" chek,
a chek of
Ni tid hing” ch ang-kwo - tad, i
cngaa (féi.
es ae p>)
min-zyong shaa :
Ni e ia sin’ Stin- tak, -tsai?; gm kaw? Sshai ，
lok .
o
Ni kin uk ‘hd tai? kan ka’
€ 过 > ¢
(Ni tia 16 kom? chak, <m chang tak)
lok 5 |
>
(Ni chong ‘yi -kin-kwa
a chéng zt oft “ho fat.
“Koti ane “tsz Sho chong” -kin2.
SNgo £ *yiin-yék, kwo? Sk‘dii.
Ni chéng ztioi*-po” shap,.
Shai
(kon cning 。 fan dai “la?
aS ey shek, “ho aging”
t
Nes yiw’ shép,
Nb oli yuk,
ie a ti yuk, cham, or
ee < >?
Sneéi yit® shap, to° .nam.
Nei toa? “shat oO” tsd lo” po’.
‘Nei aa “sai _kon- tseng?+ chi?-“hé lok
SNgo ye yity shou.
“shot A
Shed Cs SNE
Tai--“hoi “hd an a
<M yia’ tung”
Svat “kéi Sham
eis Sts'fo kwo? ‘hoi. [a???
“Shoa 102 She Syan lok.
“T4162 hoi? Sms yat, pany kom? Syin*
Ko- uti utsia més? hak, lok,
iti shangt bao
i ch ang* “¢t'aa.
Ko’. ti tén?* cm “hd shap, (tak,) kom’
Gs
=16.
<Ho， Sngo of shangt shik, :
£Yaa ‘ho cto cngaa. -chbek
“E80 zyong*) “ho ‘shia
£Ts‘6- yong (or
kei hai? Cho ts’ me ming-ke” cyan. I
{Nei shap, 。 人 an cy cch'un lok?
This [C.] man very tall large.
I shorter than he.53
That
This
This piece string too-long.
LC.] cow fat.
(C.] sheep thin.
This piece thread too-short ; not enough use.3?
This [C.] house very large one [or C.}.16
This length road so narrow not walk can.3?
This [C.] chair strong.
This (C.] table very weak.
His body very strong.
I weaker than he.
This -C.] table-cloth wet.
Sun dry bring back come.??
This piece rock very hard.
You must boil until this meat tender, ov This
meat you-must boil till tender.
Your pair-of hands dirty.35 7%
You go wash clean best.53
I want hot water.
Not want cold water.
Great ocean very deep.? Have how deep.??
Rivers shallower than seas.
Water road very far.32
By road going not one half so far.
Those plantains not-yet ripe.3?
These coolie-oranges unripe over-much (Jit.
over-head).
Those eggs not good boil (can) so old.
Oysters, I want raw eat.
Have great many water-cows (or water-oxen).
Goats very few.’
He is very clever’s man.
You ten parts stupid-3*
1. Sometimes pronounced 4.
I8
LESSON VIII.
Lo no ce on oo
> =e + YY FY FF ®
18.
了
. Ican’t reduce my terms.
. You tell him.
LESSON VIII.—Monetary.
One dollar.
A dollar and a half.
Half adollar. Over adollar. [ nounce.
This word ‘ngan' is very difficult to pro-
Do you say so? Do you pronounce it so?
That is easier to pronounce. [pieces).
A dollar is divided into ten ‘ho,’ (ten-cent
One ‘ho’ is divided into ten cents.
Ten dollars and sixty-six cents. [dollars ?
Can you change accounts in taels into
One tael is equal to a dollar and forty cents.
Nine mace. Nine cash. [dollars to me.
You agreed to hand over eighteen hundred
One tael, seven mace, six candareens, six léf.
What is a dollar worth in cash ?
It is worth one thousand and forty cash.
How much wages do you want a month?
I want eight dollars a month. This is too
much. {so much.
My expenses are great, I cannot give you
If I find my own food, it is not much.
. Themaster does not provide you with food;
of course, you find yourself.
(done it.
Do you know how to do the work ? I have
You must not spend this money.
You ought to send it home.
Does he gamble? I think he does.
Does he play at cards, or dominoes?
Both ; healso plays at fan-t‘an, pé-tsz, and
with dice.
If he gambles, I shall not employ him.
I have.
. He says he won't dare do so.
. I take it he is acquainted with his work.
Probably he is.
一 个 银钱 .四 一文
HAP SR SE,
“PH SREE, (or) P90, TE LSE,
pes
UMEBGEEE, Th (Ane e RE,
MMi fe Sn Ss
BD,
+ASREBA S BED, oo 十 个 天
西数 你 哈 伸 元 数 喇 险 呀 ，
一 击 银 值得 个 四 银钱
九 钱 银 . 九 个 鳅 ，
UR EAKZE FN SAR,’
一 而 七 鳅 大 分 大.
— fA SRSER IFES EE,
AEF AV ss,
你 一 个 月 要 到 多 人 工 呢 ，
要 八 个 银钱 个 月 .多 过 厌 呵 ，
Fe BK, FAAS Zam,
BEA OIA,
RR AR CPE
FESR,
EDN a
ORNBE BLUE EPP Fe SAAS,
你 若 好 使 呢 响 铸 .
您 巍 访 寄 翻 去 需 ，
TERR SEE, Fe A FANT,
TAFT EF, A
两 榜 都 有 . 又 插 抽 . 打 赛 字 , 构 色 。
pees aed (” BO)
Crate (Bas, ah 4s,
riaane Hh wees
SOUR EEE ELP 大 概 傈 呀 .
1. The €R in such a phrase is ambiguous: it may mean dollars, or taels.
LESSON VIII.
19
一
wb we
10.
II.
28.
29.
30.
31.
33:
oD AD
LESSON VIII.—Monetary.
Yat, ko? ,Sn8an 5 zts‘in,* oy yat, .man.
Ko» pin? chgan-zts‘in* [kei engan -=ts'in .<
Pan? ko? cngan ts in,* or ptn?_man. Ko”
fe)
Ni-ko” Slag tsz? ‘hd chan “kong 全
SNei haf SNei hai
Cran
kom “kong me>?
“kom wa? me 2?
“Ko-ko? yt. uti “kong lo’.
Yat, ko? ngan -ts; in* fan shap, cho.
Yat, ha tsz fan shap, oun.
Shap, ko? sage sua clengt luk, ,ho
luk,, or en ko? luk, ,hé luk,.
‘Long sho? Snéi Swai shan cyin sho? 1m
[zts” in*
ong cngan chik,-tak, ko sz” chgan-
“Kat ko?
Seneca
Swai a?
Yat,
“Kat (ts in cngan. <ts‘in*
SNéi eying thing 。 kaa ts in ‘pat, cngan
kwo) “ngo.
Yat, ‘long ts‘at, ,ts' in a fan luk,.
Yat, ko? chgan-zts' in* ‘chat tak, Sei to
ie}
i in* ? (cts‘in.
SChaa tak
i ? > 2
=*Néi yat, ko” yiit, yia
yat cts'in <lengt sz -shap,
“kes oto cyan- kung
ni?? [kwo "< tai 42
via’ pat, ko? gpgan its ko? yiit,. ee
"Ngo cshai- fai? ta 他; cm “pei tak, kom? cto
kwo? £néi.
Hai? shik, tex het em hai? (to 47
<M ha? shik, sz*-,t'ad,* haf? shik, ts2®-
“Kéi-ke’ fa “la?
<M “kam a lok
SNei ‘hia tsd? 。
[lok .
m ‘hit 4? ? "Ngo tso2 live?
SNéi am “ha S oral cat oti ts in.*
‘Nei Yin, koi kei? iho hai? Kwai. 并 A?
Sai “td-zts" in* me?? Ngo “kwa hat?
SK'6ia ap'ai*.、 “chi
i??
pe kwat, e. ai* a
Cex in ee
ta maty,--ye zP'al
“Long yong” 18 Syaa; yaa? 。 cha tan, “ta
“po-tsz>*, “chak, shik,. (Ska.
{K's hai? “to- ats‘ ‘in* Sigs < Sts'eng+
‘Nei wa? {koa eng + Wa>* lok ..
£K'6a wa? cm ckom tso? lok.
"Ngo “vai-tak, S60 hai? shuk, ‘shat lok.
aug ae ee Ds
TAi?-k'oi”” hai? a?
One [C.] silver cash, or one dollar.
One (and a) half dollar. (dollar.
Half [C.] dollar, oy half dollar. One (and) odd
This ngan character very difficult to-speak. ”
You do so say, do-you ? 39 You do so say (or
pronounce), eh ? 39
That easier to-say (or pronounce).3"
One [C.] dollar divided ten dimes.
One dime divided ten cents.
Ten [C.] dollars and six dime six (cents), or ten
[C.] six dimes six.
Tael accounts you can carry-out-into dollar ac-
counts, not can, eh??
One tael silver worth one [or C.] four dollar.
Nine [C.] cash.
You agreed hand-over thousand eight money to
Nine mace silver.
me.
One tael seven mace six candareens six (/é:).
One [C.] dollar change can how many cash ?
Change can one thousand and forty cash.
You one [C.] month want how much wages,
eh 253
Want eight [C.] dollars [C.] month. Much too.”
My expenses great ; not give able so much to you.
Do eat self, not is much.”
Not do eat master, do eat self's certainly.21
Not reduce can.3?
You know do, not know, eh?” I done already .3?
You not good use this money.
You ought send back go home.
He gamble, eh ?39 I think does."
He play-at what, dominoes-or-cards, paper
cards, or bone tablets, eh ?53
Two kinds also have; further Play-at fan-t'dn,
play-at po-tsz, throw dice.
He does gamble, I not engage him.
You tell him to-hear. Told.>
He says not dare do.”
I see-can he is acquainted ‘hand.’3* Probably is.*
mm mr mm mm mn Oe
9
nbn DN » N N BY HF WH
Besa Pads FO ow
30.
3I.
32.
Camry ane wn
LESSON IX.
LESSON IX.—Commercial.
How much is this ?
What is the price of that ?
It is too dear.
I shall not buy it. I don't want it.
Have you any cheaper ones ?
This is cheaper.
How do you sell this rice ? [prices.
Oh! don’t stand out so. Reduce your
Increase your offer. You are dear.
No. They are first quality of goods.
. Isit good? Mine are the best.
I saw better ones before.
Have you any better ones ?
Bring them for me to see.
If suitable, I shall certainly buy.
It does not matter if they are dearer.
There are none as good as these through-
out Hongkong.
It is imitation. No; it is genuine.
. You don’t know that these are good things.
I do. I have been in that business. Indeed !
. Lam afraid it is old, isit not? No, it isnew.
This is no use. It is useless.
He wants too high a price.
You offer too little. Don’t be so stingy
It will not pay cost price.
How long will it last ?
I guarantee it will last four years.
That is a promissory note, is it ?
How much is the capital and interest ?
The interest is only three dollars per men-
sem. [rather little interest.
That’s very heavy interest. No; it is
The capital is one hundred dollars payable
on demand.
呢 个 平
BEM BOE,
ws, LA, ETO,
PRTC OR, EROS,
TER EIT, $250 — HT A,
JepPe ASL, FRR ZE NGO,
Be Hy Jd SPR,
{ANCE PER RI,
ERAS FB BA ES REOEE RS,
BRIE, FOAM HS TRIE BP, £8,
(EWES WEA FAIRE,
a He meee pe HH AA,
得
你 伸 得 少 呵 、 an 留 住 价 订 ，
吐 够 本 (or ANSE) WY,
PSMA,
我 包 可 以 用 得 四 年 ，
Aske Cte A,
AB SFA or simply ACA), 0° ASIA)
BB,
+5 = TAS SEA AK,
Hf LAF PEAY, FEAP IE,
Ax 6— Bi vc EEL,
H
mm pmp |
0 ON AU FW NH n ODO
20.
at.
22.
2 5:
24.
25.
26.
27,
28.
29.
30.
31.
32.
Oo OY Aw YWN
LESSON
ots kk uto agen? (or ts 各 oni ee
Ko’- oti “kéf ot? ka? -¢ts'in “ni ??
Kwai? kwo . ct’au, or kwat hae -tsai2 lok,
SNgo . cm Sina a. ™M yi? lok ,.
SYat ae eng-t ti ke’ Smo 4?
Ni ko cprengt- tio? ?
22 22
>
“Nie oti Smai ctim mai> ool?
[ka (14°
Age (v4, (or. Ai- 4) cma -tép* , Kam
Net tim ti [lok
£ a Oc. 62)
M hai? kwai’ ho fo
Ho cm “ha A ia Nee -ke chi? cha lok...
Sha- oti ke?
2¢ 《 ¢ 22
Chung? ee ho- oe ke? £mo ai ?
inna
ge SNeéi kwar? a?
a 2 Hai? tai? yat
nia
SNgo shi" kin’ “eo”
Ning aes pe Sngo Stal.
42
aie: >
[ho ke’.
Tong Hong. “kong to Smo Dir。 tikom?
Hai? KA ke? <M hai*; ; hai?
SNié uto cm 。 fan- tak,- hoi kwai? tsin? ke.
ist 8
te}
Shik, ae
shang! . lok.
Hop) “shai, Sngo shi?- -pit, mai
42
Kwai- ott ot? ie ka? tar’ a
oo ke’.
.2 >
uto tso= kwo
>
Hai?* ? [san ke
OF aon)
<M hai*. hair
<M- _chung-yung?
“Ngo Lo-ati
Hai kai?
(Ni ko?
lok .
ie}
44° kwa??
Smo yung?
Sou ast -tak， aa- (ts‘in cto.
‘Nei “péi- tak,
chii?-ka? P
<M kaw’? Span (or Span <ts'in) Ae
“Shaf tak, “kéf noi?,* ni ??
pias (pad (Choy yung? tak,
‘Ko chong hai? k‘ it,
“shia ae <M “ho air
4 (or oA):
天
sz” nin,
tan cme! Da
“Pan oo lei. sik, ton a “pan 1672,
or “pan sik 5) “Ket uto a? [che.
SMai yat 。 sam ko? Ungan-uts; in* 16 sik,
“Hd Sch: ung le2 到 <M hai? ai Kgs
PP engt 16 人 2 4°
©Pan cngan = yat, pak, cyin, <ts'dii shi
“tsa (wi.
Ix.
This how much money (oy cash), eh ?53
That how much price, eh ?53
Dear over much, ov dear much-too.3?
Not want.3?
Have cheaper ones not, eh ??
I not buy.?
This cheaper.56
This rice how sell, eh ?53
Oh! let-it-pass. Reduce price.?*
You increase little.27 You dear.?
Not is dear. Are No. 1 good articles.3”
Good not good eh ?* Mine best.3?
I old time (formerly) seen have better ones.
Besides have better-ones, not, eh ?53
Bring come give me see.
Suitable for-use, I certainly buy.*
Dearer even not reckon-it (ov no matter).*
Throughout Hongkong even not these so good.”
Is false.*5 Not is; is true.
You even not divide-able-out valuable vile,*5-3?-
Know.’ Ialso done over that business. 3? Indeed?
[Notice this is changed into a variant tone.]
Is old one, 21 probably-’tis-isn't-it ?18 Not is, is
This no use. Useless.3?
[new.5
He wants price much.
You offer little.* Not good to-hold-the-price-in.!
[cost-money.)"
Not enough (to equal) cost-price’, (ov original
Use can how long, eh ?53
I guarantee (able) use can four years.
That [C.] is promissory note, is-it ?39
Capital money, interest (ov principal interest),
how much, eh ??
Each month three [C.] dollars interest only.®
Very heavy interest.” Not is ;* rather cheap
interest.”
Capital money one hundred dollars, any time
take back.
1, Use the former if the price is likely to be given in silver, and the latter if in cash
22
LESSON X.
H
om r AN wD
Nn RH NH NH NH NH NHN BH BH RH HH rn RH mn mn rm hn
Aaa sb os 8 6 0 2W AG EB SH S
nN Nn
on
29.
30.
3I.
32.
. If there are any bad ones, they must be
LESSON X.—Commercial.
What business does he carry on ? | TB they BF AS WE,
I am a general merchant. | ee 南北 行 噬 ，
Where is your hong ? 小 $i fe] FTE EOF
What is it called (its style) ? ALP AE RE RE,
How long have you been in business ? ! Ui eA a eine,
Call the compradore first though. | jus Ee Se eae
Have you made up your accounts ? SAEs 全 呀 .
I have not made them up completely yet. | pz St eg FEE,
Compare accounts with me. 同 我 对 数 喇 ,
Wait a bit, this item is wrong. | Seip, WEG IS
It must be gone over again. That will do. . 要 让 过 咯 、 PFGE,
Has that money been shroffed ? ， ae eprom tall sal SR eh
Call the shroff to shroff it. [changed. | 1! IL Bp GME SB | °
FANE SY EAS,
Weigh these dollars. flight. SEVEN SEO,
Ten of them are not full weight; they are | 十 个 喇 够 重 呀 、 Aa
Who is the accountant here ? 呢 处 瀑 个 做 掌 杠 呢 .
“My friend. This is the manager. FEN AC, WEA fit i] BA,
Has he a share in the business ? AE SAAT,
What goods are these? mend 42 4, Bye We,
. All miscellaneous goods. PUD EI eR a EA,
. Have they passed the Customs? [Lading? eh RS 2) Ae
oO
They have passed. Where is the Bill of 3 RL BS iS ey ARDE
AY 7 9
He wants to open a shop. (capital). 5
Iam afraid he will lose his money (dit. Lele La
y °
Where is his shop ? [very dull. 伍 个 [ay Aid Wie
There is not much business here. It is
What were the good-will, stock-in-trade eee ra sb Z Save,
and fittings sold for? [to him, was it ? al
Then it was you that sold that business
BR, RNA AE ARTA TB,
“Gown T will not cons tomorow atx | ULAR BE RAB, FEE
is Sunday. ne. FFAS Hee
When does the steamer leave? There are ay org
a great many passengers. y CA AS 开 身 WE, 有 大 多
I want to send some letters (oy a letter) 、 措 客 咯 ，
home to the country. Rae WM Bn ED 下 .
LESSON X.
23
nw
ee eH HH HH eH
Fo 8 4H 9
HOH
Si
HOH
ee
bnRbnbhb nb nb Rn
SR
28.
29.
30.
31.
32.
oot Ae et &
LESSON X.—Commercial.
Koa pew ye shangt- yi? oni? ?
{Ngo ts cnam- pak, zhong* ke
SNéf (kan zhong* chaf opin shi’ 4°?
Mi ve tez2-ha? e &
Nei tsd? (Shangt- -yP a “Kei noi* A? ?
Ki? Sid one cai “cha.
SNéi kai?* shd?
cM ts‘ ea kai?
m ts! ang 4?
ve ing- cch'o lok
所 ung Sngo tati sho (a?
“Tang Sha cha’, cnic tid ts‘ ° lok
Yit? ka? kwo? lok. Tsd* tak, lo
“Tai kwo” ko”. ti gngan* cm
Kiw?
Yai cm ‘hd ke? yin? wan po”
Tow |
¢
Shap, ko? gm kaa? Sch'ung $2
2
< ang 4°?
“t'ai-ngan*-ke? cai “traf (a?
eae: sngan* 14.2
<Hengt
42
Nishi? opin ko? tsd? chéng-kwai >* ir?
<Ngo <P’ang-‘yaa. Ni-ko” hai? tso2 szZ-SZ2-
cyan.
cohangt- y? Sk6ii Syaa fanj* Smo 4? ?
(Ni-,ti hai?_mi Sye fo? cai? =
Ham? pa?-ang? ot ha tsap, fo” lok,
Kwo7* shéi? em。 ts'ang ni? 2
Kwo? oe lok...
{Kil ‘séng hoi (kan P e
“SLam- ts? “chi cai? 2
SNgo cfong Se: 6ia shit, “pan 4’.
Kdi i oe p'o? ‘hai oh shi? ni?
(Nishi? Smo mat, shangt- -y? 4 SHO tam?
4.2
《 .
(Chid- pai, p'o’-‘taf, ka’- eshangt ‘ting
tak, 8s of tngan* a ? 2
“Kom, ‘koe ti shangt-y? hai? Snéi ‘ting
kwo? “kit me ??
Kia’ cyan ct'of fo? lok, fo”. ots 'ong 4. -
i ing (or ‘T'ing)-yat, <Laf- “par Sngo cm
‘lat lok,
“Fo-shin “kéi csh
SYaa cto up. “hak, Wh
SNgo yi? ke? sun’ fan hei Kwai chang-
Sha.
chof-。 shan chi ?2
He does what thing business, eh ?53
I do south-north hong's.55
Your [C.] hong at what place, eh ?”
What (thing) style, eh 253
You do business have how long, eh ??
Call compradore come first.5
You reckon accounts not yet, eh ??
Not yet reckoned clearly.3?
With me compare accounts. 7
Wait bit first,° this item wrong.3?
Must reckon again.3” Do can.3”
Looked over that money not yet, eh ??
Call shroffing-one come look. 2
Have not good ones must change.®°
Weigh these dollars. ?*
Ten [C.] not enough heavy.2 Light.!
This-place who [C.] is accountant, eh ?53
My friend. This [C.] is being manager.
Business he has share, not, eh ?2
These are what thing goods, eh ?53
All even are miscellaneous goods.3?
Passed customs not yet, eh ?53
Passed [s. of p. t].3? Bill-of-Lading, eh ?53
He wishes open [C.] shop.
I fear he lose capital.” (place, eh ?53
His that [C.] shop (that shop of his) at what
This place not much business.? Very dull.
Signboard, shop-residue, furniture, sold able
how much money, eh ?53
Then that business ‘twas you sold (it) tohim, was
it 239
Call men carry goods down go-down.?? To-
morrow, Sunday, I not come.32
Steamer what time start, eh ?53 Have great
many passengers.>*
I want send letter back go home country.
24 LESSON XI.
LESSON XI.—Medical.
This gentleman is a doctor. WE tre Be AE
I.
2. Is hea surgeon, or physician? | TE RAMA AE, Mey 科 呢 .
3. Calla Chinese doctor to feel my pulse. i 请 唐人 i EER,
4. Iam not very well to-day. aA H fa Zz 自 SRE
5. What is the matter with you? UR AL BF GE,
6. My head aches. CERF a] LR,
7. Have you been sick ? AUT HE,
8. Ihave not, but I feel inclined to be so. AT, 想 咀 中
g. Is there anything else the matter ? BABES STIPE,
10. I have also the stomach-ache. 我 肚 都 痛 is,
11. That is not serious. en fe Fie,
12. Take a little medicine. Ene) *
13. What medicine ought I to take? 我 ER: = 14, FRE,
14. ea back. Iam going to the San. Fk iM eK
15. I will send a man with medicine for you. FEAT BS A FR AP
16. You have fever. I will give youa draught. UN 3S BRE SMa A Hise
17. Ihaveague. Take this powder. Fe Bee Me. ROEM
18. Do you feel your throat dry ? 你 Bog Ve YAIe
1g. Ido, and it is very painful. ALGAE, Je Sue TTR,
20. Don't drink so much water. Kea Bay,
ai. bee chicken broth. Take a little BRU FB, 食 的 粥 阿 .
22 Are you able to sleep at night ? AR BA MAF 得 . 喇 删 得 呢 .
23. Has he got cold? Does he cough ? (Ey HAF, {EEA
24. At times he does, at times he doesn’t. ARPA, A RFT,
25. Putonaplaster. Does he drink ? 贴 膏药 (Bf WARE BOF,
26. Iam afraid he smokes opium. FEE TE 7G He OO.
27. Perhaps he does. I am afraid he does. eae BAS AB DEE AE OP
28. How long has he been ill ? {Bi 77: MAE,
29. He has been feeling weak for a long time. TBAT it FAR aE
30. Tell him to take some cooling medicine. HS} 1B Ba A a Ry
31. Did he feel better after taking the pills? PERI RH, SATE
32. No, he was much worse.. 1 {2 SEM,
I #k “Yam could be used ; but the above form is better.
LESSON XI.
25
H
28.
29.
30.
31.
32.
LESSON XI.—Medical.
(Ni wai* hai (yi shdngt (or yi- shang)
lok...
Sot hat? oe f° dh, shangt, (or short
a) péi noi>-_ fe ni? 2
SCTs' ‘engt cT'ong- AD yi- shangt (or short
a). lai ct'af mak, a’.
SNgo kam- ~yat, gm to tsz2- -cyin lok.
‘Ne § Gat mat a peng= 24 chi?
cl ‘ai-ts'ek at a.
fyaa “aa Sms ni 22
<
=Mo faa: S
song ‘at che?
ConHe: Syat pire peng?t mo ni 和
“Ngo 8 ott ung? a
Ko?- ott Smo mat, on ka?
shie 。 ti yok, (I -
SNgo ying shik, emi ye yok, cni??
rr
“Tang § is fan ‘lai cha’, ‘Ngo ot oka
hoi? ot _shéng- (or short a) “kwan,
“Ngo * tA fat ocyan cg yl claf “péi Snéi.
SNeéi fat vit, lo’. ‘Ngo S péi yok, ‘shou
Snét s shik, ; [ ‘sAn.
¢ 4
“Ngo fat 9ang lo” Shik, .ni- ti yok,
SNéi kin? chaa- clung kon me??
Kin? (kon: lo’;
lok :
ke
Pe .
SMai ‘yam kém?
yat2 kin? “ho t! ung’ tim
cto ‘shoii A?
“Yam oti kai pee ti chuk, (4.7
SMan-, t! as fan? -tak,, os fan’-tak oe 2?
{Koa Eidog: cts'an me? Ki Kat, Sma?
gshi* (or Shi) Syai; ai gshi*
ox shi) Smo.
Syaa
Tip, ka-y6l {Kou ‘yam “tsaa, cm
"Ngo fong ii shik, (A-piin’- yin ke’.
Pa? had 4. Wak,- che. al?
ting? a2,
£K'6a peng2 (or peng?*) Syat “kéi noi*
to
oP ge
ni? ?
Koa hd no 人 kin? Syin- yok, lo’.
Kia? Skdii shik,
SSK'6ia shik,- Sho yok, ~zyiin* kin? ho- oti
<M hai2, yiit fat, pai? lok |
2
oti clang yok, (A.
(Sma? > 3
This [C.] is doctor. 3?
He is external-practice doctor, or internal-prac-
tice, eh ?53
Invite Chinese doctor come feel pulse. ”
I to-day not very well. 3?
You have what-thing sickness, eh ? 53
Headache. ”
Have sick not, eh ? 53
Not sick ; wish to-be-sick only. 7
Besides have what sickness not, eh ? 53
My stomach also pains. *
That not much matter. “4
Eat some medicine. **
I ought to-eat what medicine, eh? 53
Wait I back come until.® I at-present go
hospital.
I send man bring medicine come give you.
You have-fever. 3" I give medicine water (i.e.,
liquid medicine) you eat.
I have-ague. 3" Eat this medicine powder.
You feel throat dry, eh? 39
Feel dry ;3" also feel very painful besides. >
Don’t drink so much water. *
Drink some chicken soup; eat some congee. *
Night-time sleep-can, not sleep-can, eh ? 53
He cold-caught, eh ?39 He cough, eh ? 3”
Have times have; have times not.
Stick-on plaster. He drink wine, not drink, eh ??
I fear he smokes opium. 5
Fear does.” Perhaps does also not certain. 3
He ill have how long, eh ? 53
He very long feel weak. 37
Tell him eat some cooling medicine. 7*
He eat (s. of p. t.] pills feel better, eh ? 37
Not is, the-rather the-worse.3”
26
LESSON
XII.
LESSON XII.—Ecclesiastical.
Is this a convent or not?
Are there any priests?
There are no priests; there are nuns only.
How many are there? Are there many
or few?
Over twenty. Twenty and more.
6. What do they, the priests, do?
Read the Sutras the whole day long, so
they say.
Do you believe it? No one does.
That isatemple. I do not know whether
it is a Buddhist, or Taoist one.
It is a Buddhist temple.
. What is the difference ?
There is a great difference.
What idols are those ?
The three Precious Buddhas.
He is a Protestant missionary.
Have you becomea convert? I have not.
Why have you not?
Is there a chapel here ?
There are two; and there is someone
preaching every day.
Are they Protestant or Catholic ?
. One is Protestant.
One (ov The other) is Catholic.
Who are the Catholic Missionaries ?
. They are all Frenchmen.
Have they families?
They are not allowed to marry.
They wear Chinese clothes.
What is the intention in this?
They want to be like Chinese.
. Is there any other reason ?
. You must ask them to know.
. Iama Chinese, and do not know.
DE [8] 1% Has PEA BE,
ALAN TT,
AVA, A Pesan,
AMES AWE, SULLY UE,
—- Fl, —+ a Be,
TELE, 0 THE, 做 世 野 呢 ，
成 日 念经 吓
tea Wea Wf, 71 A ea
{UE FF] CAI, ning i
EOL
Fh th BOER,
A tod INE,
ALIAS, 0» KAP INR,
个 的 傈 世 野 闭 攻 呢
= PEON,
1 Fe sees APE,
你 八 教 喇 er FRB,
BL TNE ES A Boe,
WE in Ane IE HE ATE,
qn eS, BAA EE,
PAE BO, UA ARO WE,
— Fe] 6% BIBER,
— (or fb TFL REE BOE,
1B ANE
fa AWE BUI,
LESSON XII. oF
o ws
Io.
Il
LESSON XII.—Ecclesiastical.
dash a. a
Ni Ban hai- om cm hai- i? =
这 |
“Yai wo-shang” “md 4° ?
Caos 区
=Mo Sm 时
Syaa ‘ “kei toko” qe
; Sy au cnéi- | kwa che.*
(fe pe? “shit nie?
Y?-shap, “dengt bo = Ye shap, ko? er
cto lok (or only ye shap, ko” ).
XK Sa tei? ai, c\vo-shéng>* cni， tsoz cmi-
Sve ni? 2
<
DB yat, nim2- king Lwo.
SNei sun? cm sun” D SNIe cyan sun ke’.
S.
Ko’ kan ha miw? ell echt hai? Fat, -
kaa’ ke?, pe Té?-kat?-ke? ani?
Hai Fat,-kaa’ ke’
SR
Base per fan pit, ni :
“Yat tai” ian-pit lok ，oF ti *yau cfan-
pit, lok aes
Ko” sot hai! mai ,Se cR O-sat_
Hai? oam “Pa Fat, lok,
S38 hai "kong ve, so be
oie
¢
Nei yapy kaw? <mrcts'ang 2? Mei-
2
F -me
cts‘ang 到
Tso? eae Snéi cm cts'ang yap> Kaw ke’
Ni shi? Syaa Vai-pai? tong Smo gle Te
Saa “long han lok... Yat, yat, sya
cyan Shae sha. " 7
Ha i in- <Cha-kaa? ke’, pe? he So
kaa? ke’ chi? 2
Yat, kan hai? (Ye-sd kai” ke”.
Yat yor ko). kan hat (hin ‘Chi kaw” ke’.
LShan- fa2 ha? iz van* a’?
Ko’-ko’ td hai Fat - lan*- poe an a>.
Sic-oa-téi? Sy au ka-kin® -mo ni?
<M cchun Ska “ts‘6a So- <P'o ke’.
Sk-0a pan? ; s ong- chong ke? lok _.
£Yaa mat, yi ?sz ai ee
ean’ 5 ; :
{koa song hok, fan of ong-,yan vat,
yong?.
Chung? aa mat, ¢ ha -kwa? md chi: aS
Yia2 man? Sk'oa tsaa? chi lo?
c. 2 - bP ee De nal
“Ngo hai T'ong-,yan, a clrte Pas
This [C.] is convent not is, eh ? 53
Have (Buddhist) priests (or) not, eh ?*
No (Buddhist) priests ; have nuns only.”
C.j,eh?3 Many or few, eh?*3
32
Have how many -
Twenty odd (C.]. Twenty °C] have more.
They, ° priests, 33 do what thing, eh ? 53
Whole day recite-sutras, (so they) say. 65
You believe not believe, eh 2’? No man believes."
That [C.} is temple. Not know is Buddhist-
or Taouist-sect’s 215 53
Is Buddhist-sect’s.*>
Have what difference, eh ?>>
sect's,">
Have great difference, er great have dif-
ference. 37
Those are what idols, eh : 53
Are Three Precious Buddhas. 于
He is speak Jesus’? 5
You entered the-faith not-yet, eh?? Not yet.”
What thing you not yet entered the-faith, eh 275 39
This-place have Sabbath Hall not, eh ?53
Havetwo CC. .* Day (by) day have man preach.
Are Heaven’s-Lord’s-faith’s, (or '5) or Jesus
faith’s, eh 3 5 3
One “C1 is Jesus’ faith’s. **
One (or The other) °C.? is Heaven's Lord's faith’s.
Priests (Romish) are what-men, eh >”
Everyone even is Frenchman. ‘
They have families not, eh? °3
Not allowed to-them to-marry wives. 5
They dress Chinese-style. 5 37
Have what meaning, eh ?53
They wish copy again Chinese (/it. Tong men,
ie., men of the T‘ong Dynasty) one same.
Besides have what reason, have-not, eh ?53
Must ask them then know .于
I am Chinese, not know. *
28
LESSON XIII.
SY or 1G” GN eS
29.
LESSON XIII.—Nautical.
This is a steamer.
That is a sailing vessel. [asteam-launch.
There is no wind to-day. We must go in
How many passengers are there on board ?
Are there fully a thousand, or thereabout ?
They are mostly Chinese, who are going
to Singapore.
Where is the Chief Officer?
This is the Captain; that is the Second
[Mate.
When shall we reach port ?
This vessel can go very fast.
. How many /i will it go in an hour ?
It will probably steam over fifty Ji.
. Is it the Chief or Second Engineer who
Do you ever sail ? {has gone on shore?
How much coal do you use a day?
It depends entirely upon the speed of the
If she goes fast then more is used; (ship.
If she goes slow then less is used.
Come upon deck. Donotgonearthe funnel.
Is this a passage boat, or a ferry-boat ?
. It is a passage boat; this is a Kau-lung
passage boat.
When do youstart ; and when do youarrive?
Where is the ladies’ cabin ; and the pantry ?
Call the carpenter to mend that door.
The hinges are off, and the lock is broken.
It has no lock. The key has been lost.
Make another.
First take a padlock, and lock the door
securely.
How many sailors and firemen are there
on board ?
. What is the capacity of the vessel ?
. What is her draft? Seven feet eight.
. They are just going to hoist sail.
WEE TR KH,
iE Ceo SIM
HAE, Be tes HANES Me,
船上 有 HEZ AZ Oe,
FF gate EOF
EA Bog, Fst ae ye ope
AE, (°
Ae OKUE, (0) AAR MRSBRIBT,
me =, WSN ae — 1K.
ie an
Pee CAA HOR EWE,
PU ae ape
— H EZ ewe,
Ta IR,
ince We BY EY, ne [" 埋
妇 舱 呢 . 管事 再
LL ATE ge, SO ETRE
TE, Mae
a Bon
LATOR 镇 紧 个 度 门
fy La HOEK, BE
BAe Hove,
BIER AF, ERA,
BEALE,
LESSON XIII.
29
29.
30.
3I.
32.
LESSON XIII.—Nautical.
Ni chek hai? “fore shiin.
Ko chek, hai ewai-Sp' ane oo
_Kam- ~yaty Smo _fung. Yia > tap, “fo-<shiin-
“tsai hoi? tok
aoe shéng? ‘yaa ‘kéi uto tap hak, (ni? a
fe}
De
‘Yai shengt 。 ts‘in ko” kom tsai- “mo a
， > oe)
of ong-cyan to lo Hou
ke?
TAs “fo ni ?or Tai “fo chaf pfn shi’ 4? ?
oO
Ni- ko” hai? Shiin- ‘chit; Sko-ko” hai? a
i 33
ing-ka’-_po
ding-ka’-p
《kei zshi* td aa @? [ “fo.
Ni chek, shin -hang tak, “ho fai’,
Yat, “tim chung chang tak, “kéi uto “16
[lo2.
Yor. -mok , ba 37 ch’ e tak, “ng: -shap) cto tes
ip tb cai? 22
Haid Tae ch’ e， ae ye och e emai chai?
Yat hit “shai “léi Smo a? ? [ni?”
Yat y Yet “shai ‘kes tot An? ni2?
Cra ‘ai ko” chek
(Ch e far oud hi, to;
shim chang far ,PE chang
[man2 | pche.”
“Ch: e man? tsai2 on “shia.
*Shéng Shin min?* (ja ‘Mai chang emai
yi-。 pang ko? shiv? ee [cni ??
Ni chek, to2- -shiin, péi? ee “shoii-to>*
和 chek, “hai?
Hai? to a’; cni
Tema ct'at) ae
“Kat- ee
a2 A.
to“ a
{Nei “kés- gshi* bol, shan; “két-,shi* te (or
“Kwin- sz5v -
SN6i ots" anes ni? ? 2 zfong*
ni??
S > 5
ta -muk- 16
ie to? cman. |
clai (hing. fan! ho
Ko oti kat’ lat ‘cho, ko” “so yada? lan?,
(lok,
{Mad ‘so lo? (M kin™* ko” ti ‘so-,shi
‘Ching lwo” taf®-yi 。 6 da
coin “shai © Pig ho- pate “so, ‘so ‘kan ko td
cman chi?-tak..
Shin shéng? ae “Ket uto “shoi- ‘sha,
“kéi uto shf- fo a’?
Ko’ gee chong tak, “Kes uto fo” gai?
Shik, SEE oe hoi @ ? “Ts: at, ‘ch’ ek,
ae “ch‘e S1éf lo” (pat,
This [C.] is steamer.
That (C.) is sailing ship.
To-day no wind. Must by fire-ship-little
go.?
Ship on have how many passengers, eh? 53
Have fully thousand [C.] so thereabouts, not
have ?? eh ?2
Chinese most.** Going Singapore. 5
{eh 27
Chief mate, eh ? 53 oy Chief mate at what place,
This [C.] is Captain ; that [C.] is second mate.
What time arrive port, eh?”
This [C.] vessel go can very fast.
One striking of-the-clock go can how many miles
road about, eh ?53
Probably steam can fifty more 1 road.
Is-it Chief engineer, or second do closed (to)
Have times use sails have-not, eh ?? (shore, eh ?53
One day use how muchcoal, eh ? 53
See that [C.] vessel go fast, or go slow only.”
Steam fast then burn more;
Steam slow then burn little.
Ascend ship’s surface. 77
Don't walk near fun-
nel that place. ?
This [C.] passage-boat, or ferry-boat ? 53
Is passage-boat;” this [C.] is Kau-lung passage-
boat.” [connect-bows to-the-port), eh ? 53
You what-time start; what-time arrive (or
Women’s cabin, eh?°3 Pantry, eh?°3
[ [C.] door.
Call carpenter come, to-make-again-good that
Those hinges came-off [s. of p. t.], the lock
moreover broken.
No lock.35 Not see the [C.] lock-key. 3?
Make again another (C.]. 21
First use (C.] purse-lock, lock firmly that [C.]
door before it-will-do.
Ship on have how many sailors (dit, water-
hands), how many firemen (/it. burn-fire),
eh??
That vessel hold can how many goods, eh ?53
Eat how deep water, eh?” Seven feet eight.
Just-about hauling-up sails 37
30 LESSON XIV.
. Who is the present Consul ?
. One of you must be telling lies.
- No, I am not. All Hongkong knows PZ AT HEAD, 通 香港 都
呢 什 事略
LESSON XIV.—Judicial.
I want to summons this man. [mine. | 我 想 告 呢 个 人 .
He is a thief，and has stolen things of TE BIB, ise EF
TINT,
Bg
5
amt
Bs
Have you any witnesses ?
I have witnesses ; they have not come yet. |
:
|
>
Issue subpcenas for them to come.
a
=
多
Has the constable arrived ? -到 | ARR
He is at the Gaol.
This is the Yamen.
What Yamen ?
3B
The Consul's Yamen (Consulate).
Mr. Fut (lit. Mr. Buddha).
SSO) ae ss
SSS Res EEE
I will trouble you to present this petition for
me to His Lordship, the Chiet Justice
Kindly tell me what to say.
HR heerern er
3
Re
Are you Plaintiff, or Defendant ?
You must tell the truth, and only say
= 跟
ans
Sa BRT RE
a Os
2
af
=
i, BML LAG,
Then I must just say what I know myself. WFR A LE Bat som Ve.
That is right ; that is quite right ; no mistake. BeM, PAGERS, Agee
Your evidence is not believed. ; GN 3 rar {8 F
The evidence given on both sides does not pH BA op LIZ r= if.
agree
FETA ase a YS,
what you have seen and heard yourself. |
ek
about this matter. ,
Re
If had said, ‘ the whole neighbourhood
che team T mide pataps tare. ORE FB 我 或 者
believed you. WL ath,
Will His Lordship allow us to go to the ey een
temple and swear on a cock’s head ? IZHEDE,
How many prisoners are there to-day ? A H AZALI,
There is a murderer, there are five thieves, Arty WL, Th fet, Reece BA
two burglars, and three kidnappers. Io — = TH Bee,
了 EA chad gam, and FEE pins are better than Fat He luk, a which is vulgar. ，
LESSON XIV.
31
te ees Ges WO
a
17.
18.
1g.
20.
2I.
22.
23.
24.
25.
26.
LESSON XIV.—Judicial.
SNgo ‘séng ko? cn ko
SRK'6ii tsd? ts'4k,,
SNéi Syat ching” Leyan Smo a? 22
a=
taa Sngo Sye lok.
SYat ching” eth am-.ts' = clai lok.
Ch' ut, ching >- cyan-p' 名 Kia? Ski lai
re
ch’ ai cyan (or . ch‘ai yiky, or luk,
rt
ov)
to” Sma?
SK'6i Shas cam- cfong.
(Ni (kan engé-,min* lo”
‘Pin (kan ¢ngé-zmin* (or qt) ni??
coe -sz2- (wan ees lo’.
Vie ka tso?
ni??
Hai? dee Ta? Yan a
To <fan Snéi t'ung Sngo tai cal
Span kwo? On?-Ch' at 98? Tait <Yan.
cM koi § Snéi kat? see ae ae
ines hai? ¢Yin- ko, pe Péi?-kd?
via? chi? chik, “kong, 。 ts‘an code kin’,
“ho Skong ch‘ ut,
pin ko? SLing- sz2- kwon
chong
cai? 2°
cts'an Si t' engt, chi?
clat.
“Kom cngo ngangz yer “kong ‘pain Shan
“sho chi ke? sz2 lok,.
ae (or ao lok ; * ng4m (or ongam)
sa 人 lok Smo t'so lok,
SNéi Shaa- aes cm yap, sun? .
SLong 。 tai “haa- (kung cm kopo «
Shi2-tan2 € yaar ko? “kong tai2-w2 lok,
<M hat2, Smad “kong. tai?-wa2. Tung
.Hang - “Kong of? chi 。 ni iin? sz?
aor
SNéi wa2, ‘ oang (kai- (fons ot? chi,’
Sngo wwe, -‘che Co- -yi sun’ net
Tat. ¢Yan ‘chun cngo- tei? hoa? mid?*
“cham kai ct at, cm “chun, oni? 22°
_Kam-mat, a “Kei uto fan>* oni? 7?
Svat ie Phang ag “ng ko” ‘ei ak, ‘léng
ko” “t4-pming- “fo ke’, sain ko? “kwAi-
I wish prosecute this [C.] man.
He does thief, (as a calling), steal my things. 3?
You have witness not-have, eh? *
Have witness ; not yet come.*”
Issue subpoenas call them come.”
Police man (or police man, or green clothes)
arrived, eh ?37
He at Gaol.
This (C.] Yamen.3*
Which (C.] Yamen, eh ?53
Consul's Yamen.>*
At-present who [C.] is-doing consul, eh ?53
It-is Fat Great-man (i.e, Mr. Buddha).”
Much trouble you for me present this [C.]
petition to Chief-Justice His-Lordship.
Not deserve you teach me how speak.
You are Plaintiff, or Defendant, eh ?53
Must according-to straight-forwardness speak,
own eyes seen, own ears heard, only good
speak out come.
Then I just must speak own person what (I) know
"5 matters. 32
Right ;32 right entirely ;32 no mistake.>”
Your evidence not enter belief.”
Both sides evidence not agree.1 [lies.3?
Certainly (of the two) there-is [C.] speaking
Not is, not speaking great-words. Throughout
Hongkong (all) even know this ([C.]
matter?
You say, ‘all neighbourhood even knows,’ I
perhaps might believe you.
His-Lordship allow us go temple chop-off fowl’s
head, not allow, eh ?53
This-day have how many prisoners, eh ?53
Have [C.] murderer, five [C.] thieves, two [C.]
burglars,’ three [C.] kidnappers."
32
LESSON XIV.
27.
28.
29.
30.
31.
32.
LESSON XIV.—Judicial.—(Continued).
Then there are a great number of cases. RY, 有 好 多 案件 咯 “
Those are the lawyers at the table. Abs BH UBER TDS,
The case has been up for hearing several Fee ie Ae ASR Ee 案 呢 ，
times ; when will judgment be given?
How do I know? Ask the Interpreter 我 点 知 呀 . FFAS
to enquire for you. hal SO
The case was tried at the Magistracy, MAR 3H Ee Se, KARR HEE
Ber HH RMR,
and the Magistrate allowed the defend-
ant to be bailed out.
Do you wish to arrest the man, or put 你 想 拉 个 人 . 或 (or 1S) +} 1B
Hue,
execution in force against his goods? _
LESSON XV.—Educational.
. Ah! here weare. This isa Government iy, 到 咯 、 He is] fe Fa SE
Free School. (classes.
There are sixty scholars, divided into four AA HH 学 生 、 Af DU SPE NEE
The master is a friend of mine, anda {HCE 2 Fe BH Re. RRB
Chinese B.A.
4. Has he got any assistant ? 有 人 PATE,
5. Not at present, but he wishes to engage 现时 fj 4 {% 过 年 AA Al
ry Ms 3
To.
II.
12.
one after the New Year.
There will be holidays at the end of the 年 尾 Ree nh,
year, I suppose ?
Certainly, we Chinese think it of the FE EO 我 吨 唐 人 过 年 算 至
utmost importance to keep the New Year. BR FE ope nA
ida book is am bey reading ? | 呢 fave, nS Bue, ;
o is eum ea the book 个 部 =F HENGE, Jet ARH
ee 7 is Da 四 aoe heen Hh OeE ME 而
you Proceed from the simple to the Y Ue ae, 大 概 自 次
difficult. PRI Eo,
It is neither very simple, nor very diffi- Mie fh BE pais (Ae
cult : the words are most of them sim-
ple, but the meaning is sometimés FR Be, 但 意思 有
very abstruse. PPLE Ree,
How many years have you been at ChB S-FBUE,
school ?
LESSON XIV.
53
2G:
28.
29.
30.
31.
32).
Io.
12.
LESSON XIV.—Judicial.—(Continued).
“Kom, Syat ‘hd cto on?-kin>* lok
ST ‘so F
“Sham ‘kéi ct'ong lo’; “kéi gshi* ting* 2 on
ni??
了
mai -t' oi* ke’ hai? chong>-. sz lok,.
SNgo ‘tim .chi a”? Paf’-t'ok, .ch'tin-wA™*
ct'ung -nei man* 2 Sha (1a?
“Hai ¢Ts‘un-- Sl6i- t'eng (or fens) ‘sham
¢ wo? Tai 96-cye' chun ctam- “po Pei-
ko? cheut clai lok.
ee 人
=Néi (ai ko
_fung Sk8ii fo?
song cyan, wak | (or pé?)
ni ?2
<
Then have great many cases.32
Sit at table those are lawyers.”
Try several sittings ;3
what time fix case eh ?53
I how know, eh?” Beg-on-your-behalf Inter-
preter for you ask a-bit.?"
At Magistracy tried over, His- Worship allowed
bail Defendant out come, 3?
You wish arrest the man, or seize his goods,
eh ?53
LESSON XV.—Educational.
OF! to lo? Ni okin hai? —Wong-/ké y?
hok;.*
SYat luk Sige ko? hok, - Shang? (or short
es (fan sz” pan ke’.
‘Sin. (Shangt hai? Sngo <P’ang- Svat;
ae éii hai? Saa? gts’ of.*
Yaa yan EN Smo cai 3
Yin2- shi Smo, tan2-hai? kwo7* nin ‘séng
“tseng ko?
<Nin Smef fong?-ka? lo?-kwa? ?
Ting?*- ke’ 142 2 Sngo-téi? <T'ong-cyan kwo?
cain stin’ chi?
Ni-ko”
¢ <
Ko’ po? hai? _Sam-Tsz?. king lo”
Nanay? ke? “lok.
ni, tuk, mat, -‘ye shi Di 了
cT‘ong-
cyan sai’-_man-‘tsai (sin tuk, ko? po?
ke? lok
“Kom tsat2 hai? ‘ts‘in shi lok, Tai.
“Koi tsz? “ts‘in oi Sham laf hok, ke?
Yat? om hai? “kef ‘ts'in, yati? cm hai? “kei
sham. Tszz tai? cto “ts'in ke’, tan2
yi-sz? ‘yaa-shi “hd sham ke?
fe Goes 2 ae | ile
°Néi tuk, ‘kéi_to .nin .shi ni ?
2 eo & 5
Ah! Arrived .3
Study.
Have sixty [C.] scholars, divided-into four
This [C.] is Government Free
classes.*>
The teacher is my friend; he is B.A.
Have man assist-teach not, eh ?53
At-present no, but over (New) Year wishes
engage [C.].
Year end holidays?" probably ?57
15 21
Certainly, we Chinese passing (New)-year
consider most important.’> 3?
This [C.] now, reads what book eh ?53
That [C.]is Three-Character-Classic.5’ Chinese
children first read that [C.]*> 3
Then just is easy book.” Probably from simple
to difficult come study.’
Also not is very shallow, also not is very deep.
Characters greater many shallow,” but
， I
sense have times very deep.”
You read how many years books, eh 253
34 LESSON XV.
LESSON XV.—Educational.—(Continued).
13. I have studied between ten and twenty Be be es ce
years. a2 i
14. Then you must be very learned. ER Be BIA ial OB, ue,
15. Oh no! I cannot consider myself as 1 (A ISR Hh 自 已 好 有
16.
17.
18.
Ig.
20.
2I.
22.
23
24.
25.
26.
27.
28.
29.
30.
31.
32.
very learned.
Where is your desk ; where is your seat ?
I do not belong to this school, I have
only come to visit—to see the teacher.
Oh! probably you areastudent. Have
you passed any examinations yet ?
I have gone up several times, but have
not graduated; my brother has taken
his M.A.
When does this class say its lessons ?
We Chinese don’t do that way; when a
boy knows his lesson he comes up and
repeats it, the whole class does not
come up at once.
If he does not know it, what then ?
He has to go back to his place and learn
it well, if he is lazy he is beaten.
These are reading the Four Books, and
those the Five Classics.
It would be well to hang up two more
maps in this school of yours.
How many have commenced to write
essays ?
A number of the scholars can construct
antithetical sentences I suppose.
Bring ink, penholder, and pen nibs. I
have brought them.
Has the Government Inspector of
Schools been to see this school ?
He has ; he has been several times. He
comes every now and then.
How many names are there on the roll?
There are sixty odd; two or three are
absent on sick leave.
TL,
MAE (or BEB, « AB) 呢 .你
receive
BOVE fi WR my RAGE
, peth + ae LT GE
Bi A han
SM REA, 我 大
PAD ge
DE DEAE RF an EVE,
Feu ATE aoe, — gy ze
部 .就 一 — Ae, Nes
BER Weg EE,
BE ane, len
TEAMS AEA, IPRA
就 打住 咯 ，
Behe ED AE, ME SPE ARE,
Powe la] HAH 2b oh ph BE
图 都 好 呵 ,
AIH 1H BA SEE SCTE,
Alf ZS le eye
dea ak a a ee
ae ma ARS
ie SN
er
4h a ee 个 因 有
LESSON XV. ae
35
13.
14.
15.
16.
I7.
18.
Ig.
20.
21.
22.
23.
24.
25.
26.
27.
28.
29.
30.
gt:
32.
LESSON XV.—Educational.—(Continued).
Ngo tuk, sD) “kéi cain (shi lok ..
‘Kom Endl tsata hai? “ho Sat hoky -man2
ke? lok .
™M hai?, ee a “kom wa? tsz2-“kéi “hd
“ee hok, -man? ke’.
SNéi ko”
ni; Snéi-ke’
SNgo cm hai?-tsd2 hok,- shang} (or short
clai Sts'o “ha
shii- al (or shit-zt'oi*, or -to'i*)
2
{ oni?
本
a) A, Sngo pat, -kwo
che, dai kin? ona ko” we “kwan (Sin
(Shang (or <Sengf ) cche，
O21 £néi hai? tuk, - hii, cyan kwa? “Ha
kwo? shi? cm-c its! ang ni?
“Hat kwo” Song” sam can, me 人 -。 ts‘ ang
yapa ， Sngo tai. “16 2。 king chung”*
“Kot lok |
ni??
Ni ee “kéi--shi* nim. shi 5
Spo: -téi? Tiong: cyan cm hai? ‘kom ke’, |
yat, ko” tuk, -shuk,, tsa? yat, ko? cai
pai’, m hai2 ee pan yat, zs" ai*
ites dai nim? ke?
Wak, cm shik, ni,
3 (
Via? (fan hai” wai?* tuk, shuk, lok_, yok,
hai “l4n-to? tsai2 “ta Ne oii ‘lok.
Ni- ti tuk, Sz? Shit; ‘ko- ti tuk,
¢ ° 2 ¢ O ca
King.
Cay os
-Néi ni
‘tim ni? 2
SN g-
kin shi-‘kwon kwa’ to ‘long
fuk, téi2 9ef-。 t'd uto “ho & a
£yaa “Ki uto ko? tsok
ir?
hot pat, man-
《
ccbang Te
Svat “hd ree hok, < shangt (or short a) Swink
tail? tou™* kwa’,
: Genres
(Ning mak,- shoi, pat,- kon, pat,-‘tsdi
dai 4 Nim La lok.
Wore, Ka shit i ike? _Kam- tuk,,
ae lai “t'af kwo? cni 。 ida Wi
Smo ai? 2
Syaa, clai kwo? “ho “kéi wan lok |, noi?-
pat, -noi* uto clai ke’. [ni ?2
Yat, -kéi?-Schi ‘San “kéi_to ae zmeng*
SYat luk es ckef ko’; “ya Sng Sam
ko? yan cyat peng?+ ko? ka’.
I read ten odd years books. 3?
Then you even are very-much possessed of
learning. 75 32
Not am, I not dare say myself very-much
possessed-of learning. 55
Your (C.]desk (or table), eh ; 53 your seat, eh ? %
I not am school-boy,! I only come sit a-little
while only,” come see a-bit that teach-
school gentleman (or contracted form)
only. :
Oh! you are read-book-man probably. 18 Ex-
amined passed not-yet, eh ?53
Examinations over two three times, not yet
entered; my elder-brother already
passed M.A. 5?
This class what-time say-lesson, eh ? 53
We Chinese not are so,* one [C.] learned-
thoroughly then one [C.] comes back-it,
(i. €., says his lesson with his back to the
teacher: so that he cannot see the book the
teachey holds) not is whole class one to-
gether up come say. 5
If not know, eh, how then ?53
Must back go seat read thoroughly, 3? if is lazy
then beat him. 3?
These learning Four Books; those learning
Five Classics.
You this [C.] school hang more two [C.] maps
also good.'
Have how many [C.] start (with) pens compose
essays, 15 eh? 53
Have great many scholars can make antitheses,
I-suppose. 78
Bring ink, pen-holder, pen-nib come.*? Brought
come. 3?
Government Schools’ Inspector have come look
over this [C.] school, not, eh? 53
Have come over good few times, 3? now-and-
then also come. 5
Roll have how many persons’ names, eh ? 53
Have sixty odd [C.]. Have two three [C.] be-
cause have sickness report leave.
36 GRAMMAR.
Directions for the Rendering of English Grammatical Forms
and Idioms in Chinese and vice versa.
CautTion.— The following directions and notes refer only to the Cantonese
colloquial, though in many instances it will be found that the forms of
expression and construction are equally applicable to both the vernacular and
book-language.
I. Chinese being toa great extent a monosyllabic language, there is no
change in the word itself such as takes place in English and many other
languages by declension and conjugation. The following pages will shew
how such forms are to be expressed in Chinese.
II. It is scarcely too much to say that position is everything in a Chinese
sentence: it takes the place in a great measure that declensions and conju-
gations do in Western languages, and often shows to what part of speech the
word belongs.
NOUNS.
NUMBER.
III. There is no difference, as a general rule, between the Singular and
Plural of Nouns, as :一
人 cyan, man. 人 cyan, men.
IV. The Plural is understood from the sense, as :一
人 pig ai 就 an cyan Swat ‘kong shiit | wa, men can speak.
FE fig AK tsok Swat (fel, birds can fly.
Note.—This is not a very trustworthy test, as the above sentences might be
rendered in the Singular in English.
Caution.—When speaking in Chinese do not attempt to render English Plurals
in such a manner in Chinese as to show that they refer to more than one, unless
particular attention is to be drawn towards the fact that more than one is spoken of,
or unless No. V. is applicable.
V. The Plural is shewn to be meant in Chinese (and must be expressed
in English) by the qualifying words, where such words occur, or by the
general context, as :—
个 ne) 人 ko” oti cyan, those men.
H H 有 ad 个 人 ie yat, yat, fyat “két ko? cyan lai, several men come every day.
NOUNS， 37
NUMBER.
VI. The sign of the Plural, wh téi?, is often added to the word man,
人 cyan;i but such a combination is not always best rendered by ‘ men;’
but may be put into English in various ways, as :一
喇 % 我 做 Op, 人 nah 做 嘱 < hai Sngo tsd?-ke’, yan-tef tso7
ke’, if was not I that did it; it was some one else.
人 po tB EL ae cyan-teE hai? “kom “kong, people say so.
人 pal ae eyan-tei? ‘kong, it is said—on dit.
人 pe at 我 人 子 th 4, aE He <Yan-tei” wa? Sngo, cyan “tsz
2 se :
hai- mat,-,shdi* cai ? Whom do men say that I, the son of man, am ?
Note— cyan alone is also used in this sense, as :一
A an {th WER cyan wa? hai? “kom, it is said to be so (i.e., men Say it is so).
VII. The Plural is sometimes formed by the reduplication of the
Noun, as :一
人 人 知 咯 cyan cyan chi lok ， all men know.
Note 1.—This repetition of the Noun shows, as above, that the whole of the
class for which the Noun is a name—in its entirety, or the whole of the portion
which is then the subject of thought or conversation is referred to.
Note 2. 一 Such a form may often be equally well, or better, rendered into
English as follows :—
人 人 都 yal cyan yan td chi, every one knows it.
= = O
Oa CR
KA BS th BE, GENEL TT m2 2 82k, om “hap
a everybody does it, you need not be afraid.
VIII. Sometimes a collective and exhaustive phrase is used to express
what in English would oftener be expressed by a simple Plural and Adjective,
as ,一
所 有 a 多 人 只 HK WE ‘sho sya kom’ to cyan <lai {sai sai,
all the men came. (As many men as there were all came without an exception).
| & | ae a Ga fe se Dc LO
人 we, 有 ui 多 去 ay 表 yan oni, “ya kom uto Poai kom ot
all the men went. (Of the men, as many as there were, went).
IX. Very often a Numeral is added to the Noun (or Pronoun), owing to
the necessary ambiguity wheg no Plural is otherwise expressed, when in
English the simple Plural would be sufficient without any such device, as :一
{B a 个 Bg Sei luk ko? ai, they six came.
Remark. 一 个 may equally well mean he, she or it.
Note 一 等 ‘tang is given in some books as a sign of the Plural. It is of the
book language and is not often used as an affix to the Noun (or Pronoun)
in everyday conversation.
38 NOUNS.
CASE.
X. Strictly speaking there is no case in Chinese. See No. I.
XI. There is then no means of distinguishing whether a Noun (or
Pronoun) in Chinese is to be rendered in English by the Nominative, or
Objective, or other Cases (for Possessive Case see No. XV, XVI, XVII, and
XVIII) except by its position, or the obvious meaning, sometimes shewn by
Prepositions, etc., as :一
我 {ef ‘ngo “pei, I give.
{HA 我 “pei Sngo, give me.
4 Bi] 我 ‘pei kwo” Sngo, give (it) to me.
Remark.—The position of 我 Sngo shows whether it is J, or me, the same
word being used in Chinese for both.
{Bh au 我 全,66 wa? (or wa?*) Sngo, he scolded (or told) me.
Note 一 伍 an 我 Skat wa? Sngo, may mean, ke scolded me, or he said to me ;
but in the latter case there is often another word added to amplify the ae
as 一 个 说 我 Ay Sea wa? Sngo chi, or qs an xk He Sait wa Sago
Aa engt, he told me.
XII. The position of the Subject or Object with regard to the Verb may
be stated generally to be the same as in an English sentence. See No. XIV
though.
XIII. When two Verbs are used in Chinese to express what in English
is shewn by one Verb, the Objective or Dative is placed between the two
Verbs, as :一
1B a 我 yes Soa wa? ‘ngo tengt, he told me.
1B 打 发 我 去 Seeait “ta fat, <ngo hoii’, he sent me.
Remark.—The meaning of the above and similar phrases will be better got
at by paraphrasing them, as :一
= Gee 2 “i 3
伍 an 我 A -Ko wa" “ngo chi, he told me, i.c., he spoke to me about it in such
a way that I acquired a knowledge of it, or more simply, he told me so that
I knew about it, or, he informed me about it.
XIV. When particular attention is to bt drawn to the Object in the
sentence, then it and its qualifying words take precedence of all other words
in the sentence, as :一
个 ult 生 意 、 你 做 有 a iy We Ko’ oti shang-yf ‘nés tsd2 vat
Set noD* cni? How long have you carried on that business ?
个 [的 & 我 8 OKA. 咯 “ko oti uk, ,‘ngo mai?-‘cho lok. I have sold those houses.
NOUNS. 39
CASE.
XV. The Possessive Case may be, and is often, expressed by the addition
of IEE ke’ to the Noun (or Pronoun), as :一
人 路 cyan ke’, man's.
A nth nee cvan-teP-ke ， men’s.
我 路 Sngo-ke’, mine
XVI. ney ke? is often understood and not expressed at all, as :一
我 fe S “ngo uk, my house.
XVII. A Personal Pronoun preceding a Noun may be in the Possessive
case, or in apposition to the Noun which follows it, as :—
xe ¢ Bae 5 gd: Gree
我 th 生 =, 中 人 BE te ngo téi (Shang-yi chung yan hia ce
We business men understand it, don't we?
¢ 2
我 事 ie] “ngo sz--_t‘au*, means my master.
¢
Note.—In the first case the context shows it must be in apposition; in the second
example the meaning is quite plain in Chinese.
AVITI. The word 之 chi is even used with certain words to mark
the Possessive though essentially a book word; this occurs but seldom in
the purest colloquial.
GENDER.
XIX. Many Nouns in Chinese may be used with equal appropriateness
as names for males or females, or for both combined. They are used with
equal correctness for either, or for both males and females when there is no
necessity to draw a distinction, or when the sex is known to the hearer.
The context, or sense, will generally show whether a Masculine, or Feminine
word, or one common to both Genders is to be used to convey the meaning
of the Chinese word into English.
Such Chinese nouns are rendered Masculine or Feminine when it is
desirable from a Chinese point of view to point out the difference.
4p Gee Gy ne :
有 HE 人 WE “Yat kei uto yan ni? Hew many men are there? or How
a oe cama
many persons are there ?
{B 老 Be 您 py 洋 人 Soi ‘1a-,p'o hai? oat: yong-yan, his wife is a
Portuguese (i.e., Western Ocean person).
男 hate 4 HE Zz 人 We . Nam Snot “tsung kung? Svan “kei ie
yan ni? 2? How many fersous, male and female, are there altogether ?
XN, The Genders are distinguished by prefixing the words 男 cnam，
male, and 女 Sndii, female, respectively to the noun when it refers to the
human species, as :一
. Re
男 人 cn 各 mm--yans，2WMCNL 男 fF ndm- tsai, boy.
= ¢ es
Garret 7 Co saat ME 7% ‘
k 人 ndii-.yan*, woman. 女 {F Snod-‘tsai, girl.
: a8 ‘a
GENDER，
XXI，The Genders are also distinguished by affixing 公 kung and
Be -p‘o* respectively for males and females, as :一
44 BR 公 pak - ye" kung, an old man, a greybeard.
4 y " .
AH BR Pisa pak - ye* zP o,* an old woman, an old wife.
Hit 人 公 cmaf-oyan kung, a male go-between.
Ves 人 vss cmai- yan Po a female go-between.
主 入 公 “chii-yan kung, a master
we Sona
主 人 pe chii- yan ,p'o, a mistress
事 大 八 sz tia _kung, a master.
事 大 we sz°-t’ai <P'O a mistress.
屋 主 uk “chi, a landlord
>
fe = eB uk chi (Po, 4 landlady.
Note. 一 伯 is pak | Je" alone is Masculine and not common to both
Genders.
事 Lye! s2”.t'ai* alone is more generally Masculine, though applicable to both
males and females.
2 Kise ， > ner
fe + 公 uk chit sate is allowable, but seldom used. 屋 于 uk, - chit
alone is Masculine and Feminine.
. Gs 5 : ;
XXII. te 16 and pe <P‘o are used in the same way as 公 kung and
YE pio, as 一
IE 家 4 tan®- ka 18, a boatman.
蛋 家 Piss tn -kh pio (or zo"): a boatwoman.
XXIII. The Genders are distinguished by the use of AL (kung, or Bid
“swt for the Masculine and {We “na for the Feminine for animals and birds, as :一
gp kat, a fowl; As A *kai-_kung, a cock; 5B 3 ckai-‘né, a hen.
fi) “kaa, a dog ; Afi 公 “kait- kung, or Afi Ae “kaa-“kwi, a male dog; 狐 aes
“kaa-‘nd, a bitch.
& Sma, a horse; & a See ewe, a stallion CK By Sma- kung is not used);
KR
& {Bs ma- nA, a mare. or. ;
午 cngat， an ox, es 2p Hi cngatr- kwa，o7 aS 公 cngatr kung, a bull;
午 {HBR cngatt- na, a cow.
Gun 4 i
Note.— {Hi nA is even applied to women when spoken of together with
their children, as:—
两 仔 {he Nong tsaf “nd,* mother and child.
NOUNS. 41
GENDER.
一 一 Pe ee Sa :
— 仔 {He sam tsaf nd,* mother and two children.
The word fF tsai is common to both genders here.
: ty , 4
The Masculine for ued na used in such a manner is ai (Ve, as :一
= 5
网 仔 SR “long “tsai cye (or ye) father and son.
= {FBR eam Stsaf ove (or ye), father and two sons.
=) co)
4 F :
4 A Ai pak,-,ye*, and mi {te Sto-“na are used for father and mother; the latter is
rather vulgar.
Remark.—It is remarkable, that with all the Chinese reverence for age and the
superiority of those who are older over those who are younger, that in two or three
Colloquial idiomatic phrases in common use the younger and inferior is named first
before the elder and superior. Those given above for father and son, etc., and mother
and child, etc., are two of them _ Besides those there is BW ie 姆 Sang ‘ sham-
< >
“m6, two sisters-in-law, (two brothers’ wives are thus styled), any ca ie Sleng
2
tai’- hing, two brothers.
Other words are sometimes given as expressing Gender ; but the beginner
will find that they are but seldom used in Colloguial, and that the above are
quite sufficient for all practical purposes, as far as the vernacular is concerned.
XXIV. 仔 Stsaf used by itself is Masculine, as :一
2 apts
af 我 仔 hai~ £ngo “tsai, it is my son.
k “nou is the Feminine, as :一
、 二 《 条
我 A | k ngo “mo ‘ndii,* I have no daughters.
In combination the compound word of which 人 三 ‘tsaf is a part is common
to both Genders, if it refers to living objects (see Note), as :一
an $e 仔 sai -man- tsai a child.
猪 仔 chi Stsaf a Little pig.
RE
Xfi) 仔 at- tsai, a puppy.
Exceptions :— 男 仔 cnim- tsai a boy, Masculine.
过 二
女 仔 “néii- tsai, a girl, Feminine.
2¢ 3
事 仔 sz-- tsai, a boy”(servant) Masculine.
42 NOUNS.
GENDER.
Note 一 仔 'tsaf when used as a diminutive with Nouns whether they apply
to objects without sex, or living beings, has no effect on the Gender of the
Noun, as :一
es ‘oie “teaz
村 上 z oi* tsai, a small table.
部 仔 po’ 7 “tsai, a pass book, or small manuscript book. %
iE 仔 ， “tiengt “teat, a small boat.
Ae fez Wee fF 4 i oe “tsai, a baby.
XXV， It will be seen from the above that Gender is not generally either
inherent to, or a necessary condition of a Chinese word. It is made use of to
prevent confusion, and is often not used even where to our ears it seems as if
confusion were already worse confounded without its use.
Remark —As a rule abstain from the use of sex-denoting words, when others
will do equally well
POINTS OF THE COMPASS.
XXVI. Notice that in Chinese the names of the eight principal points
of the compass are reversed in their order from what they are in English :一
Ist, 一 As to the order of naming the four cardinal points, instead of
saying North, South, East, West, they say 东西 南北 .Tung Sai
<Nam Pak,, East, West, South, North.
2nd.—The order of the component parts of the names of the other
principal points of the compass, the names of which are compounded of the
names of the four cardinal points, is reversed in Chinese, as :—
Chinese. English. Chinese. English.
KH Ab Tung-Pak， North-East. ci wi crung-.Nam South-East.
Pe AL Sai-Pak, North-West. 西 南 Sai- Nam South-West.
RELATIONSHIPS,
XXVII. The word denoting relation is placed after the name of the
individual. When names of relationship are used in connection with the
name of the individual to whom this relationship belongs, or on whom it is
bestowed, the name of the individual comes first and is followed by the name
of the relationship, contrary to the practice in English, as :一
ct = FL A am shuk ,， Uncle A Sam.
NOUNS. 43
GENDER.
Note.—It is a common practice amongst the Chinese:—tst, to give a title
of relationship to those with whom they are acquainted; 2nd, to those to whom
they wish to be polite, though perfect strangers to them even to the extent of never
having set eyes on them before The title of relationship thus bestowed on an
individual, to whom the speaker is not in any way related, depends upon the age of
the person addressed and, of course, the sex. The large terminology, which the
Chinese possess for indicating the different shades of relationship, lends itself
readily to all the gradations of respect considered necessary in thus addressing
strangers and adopting them for the moment as relations. If the stranger looks
older than was at first sight supposed and a favour is being asked, to which it may
be thought a ready response is not likely from appearances to be given, a more
respectful degree of relationship can readily be substituted for the one originally
bestowed on the spur of the moment without sufficient thought. Do not therefore
suppose that when a Chinese speaks of Uncle and Sister-in-law So and So that
these people are his relations
Remark.—To those who have been in the United States the analogy of this
custom to that prevalent in the Southern States of addressing elderly negroes and
negresses as Uncles and Aunts will be apparent.
TITLES OF RESPECT.
(See Appendix for Modes of addressing Relations.)
NXVIII. 先 生 Sin- shang}, literally, elder born, but which is applied
to teachers, is also used in the same way that .Wonsrewv and Herr are in
French and German respectively. It is not confined in its use to preceptors
therefore, but is often used for Mr. and also means Sir or gentleman, as :一
ice XX 生 cCh an Sin- shangt, Mr Chan.
(% PF vie 生 hai?-A°, on shangt, Yes, it is so, Sir
有 个 先 生 we aa ko (Sin- shangt lai, « gentleman (ov teacher) came.
Aid Fe AE, £5 RI) wit BE AAC ko? sine shanat hai? Ukim fan f00 cas
ts02, the gentleman divected it to be so done.
Note.—The feminine of 先 生 Sin-eshangt is fit Wy LSZ nal.
Remark.—The Boys in foreign houses in Hongkong are styled 先 生
sin- shang.
c °
XXKIX. Notice that titles in Chinese come after the name of the
person, as:—
ised 大 人 <Ch'an TA? yan, His Excellency Ch'an
44 TITLES OF RESPECT, ARTICLES AND CLASSIFIERS.
TITLES OF RESPECT.
XXX. Notice that in Chinese the surname, as in our directories,
precedes the other names which an individual bears, as:—
林 mt 有 (ham Bw Syai
Note.---The cd A’ is not really a part of the name. The surname and name
in the example if given alone would be 林 有 (Lam £Yau, but this particle ae
A? is often prefixed to a Chinese individual name (they can scarcely be called
Christian names), or what the Americans call a given name, 7.e., not one inherited
as the surname is. This happens when the name consists of only one syllable.
XXXI. Amongst phrases expressive of quantity occur such as 大 &.
tai? pin’, 小 zh. “sia pan’, which mean two divisions of any thing, one being
rather more than the half, and the other rather less.
ARTICLES.
XXXII. There are no Articles in Chinese.
XXXIII. — yat, is often used before a Noun where in English the
Indefinite Article is used, and 4H ko, that, where the Definite Article would
be employed in English, as :一
一 一 个 人 yat， ko” cyan, 4 [C.] man.
个 人 ko” cyan, the man.
Note.—When the Numeral Adjective is thus used it must always be
accompanied by the appropriate Classifier for the Noun, as above.
XXXIV. But the words which may take the place of the Article in
English are often omitted, as:—
成 H Shengt yat,, the whole day.
As in French no Article is used in Chinese before the word half, as :一
(=) 斤 fp (yat,) kan pun’, a catty and a half.
Remark.—The —— yat, which might be thought to take the place of the
Article is not often used in this connection unless particular attention is to be called
to the one.
XXXV. The use of the English Definite Article the before an Adjective
to express a class of persons, as the virtuous, is expressed in Chinese by ## lou?
following the Adjective. 7
CLASSIFIERS.
XXXVI. A Chinese does not say, as we do in English, a board, a ship, a
man, etc., but he generally uses some word, such, for instance, as piece, just
as we generally speak of a pair of trousers, a brace of snipe, a set of instru-
ments, etc. Only, this is not analogous; for the Chinese use partitive nouns
as well, and Classifiers are something outside our Western experience,
CLASSIFIERS. 45
CLASSIFIERS.
XXXVII. These words have been termed Classifiers, as certain ones are
used for certain classes of objects and they cannot be used for others and vice
versa. They have been described as constituting a secondary class of Nouns.
XNXNNVIII. They are largely used in the Chinese language, more
especially is this the case in the colloquial. The Cantonese colloquial has
its full share of them. Every Noun has its appropriate one or more. No
confusion must take place in their use. Mistakes in the use of these
Classifiers may insult a Chinese, as for instance to speak of a man as — 焦
人 yat, chek | cyan instead of 一 个 人 yat, ko? <yan, 焦 chek | being only
applied in pure Cantonese to animals, birds, and certain inanimate objects,
etc., though in the Hakka Dialect the former mode of expression is quite
correct. The learner must therefore pay the greatest attention to these
important words, of which an alphabetical list of those in colloquial use is
given below with examples of the way in which they are used.
XXXIX. Genuine Classifiers are those which are merely distinctive, or
descriptive to a more or less degree of quality, but which have no numerical,
or quantitative meaning attached to them. These distinctions are in many
cases to the English ear so apparently arbitrary and subtle as to defy
translation.
Remark.—The pidgin English word ‘piecce’ used before a Noun, as:—one piece
man is the rough attempt at what cannot be translated.
Remark.—Many words which are constantly used in Combination with Nouns
have had the conventional term of Classifiers applied to them by foreigners, though
being merely either simple Nouns, or Nouns of Multitude. They have thus been
grouped together with the Genuine Classifiers, the latter being ‘words which have
no analogous terms in our own language’ to represent them. The designation, thus
given to a number of Nouns simply used in a partitive sense has been a misnomer,
and is at the same time misleading, as the distinctive character and beauties of the
use of Genuine Classifiers have thus been lost sight of. ;
XL. The Classifier comes immediately before the Noun, the Numeral
preceding it, as:—
BS 个 人 yat， ko” cyan, @ [C.] man.
Note.—This rule applied to the cases where a Noun is only accompanied by
a Numeral and therefore by the Classifier also.
XLI. The Classifier is used occasionally after the Noun. It is used
after the Noun in enumerating articles as in a list, or catalogue, or when
particular attention is to be drawn towards the number, but this is more the
case in the book language. It is not every Classifier that can thus come
46 CLASSIFIERS，
CLASSIFIERS.
after its Noun, when used alone with its Noun. 个 ko’, for instance, cannot
be used after 人 cyan without a Numeral, but 焦 chek | can be used after
Fis <shiin, as:—
‘ha tp 船 焦 有 3 多 个 “tat Sha oe chek , sya “pat uto ko’, see |
how many boats (or vessels) there ave. This sentence would, however, be generally used as
a subordinate one in a compound sentence and not used alone as a simple question.
The more natural form would be, hy 是 有 3% 多 焦 船 We E ‘tai Sha
Svat kk oto chek | shin “hai shit”, see how many boats (or vessels) there are here, or hy ip
AZ HS Se A ER ER ‘vai Sha Syat “kei to shin chek, “haf shii’
Note 一 个 ko’ can be used after 人 cyan when a Numeral comes between them,
as 一 人 有 = 个 yan, (Syaa) sam ko? of men, there were three.
XLII. A more common use of the Classifier after the Noun is when it
is accompanied by a Numeral in which case any Classifier may follow its
Noun, when particular emphasis is to be given to the Noun. It is then
brought out with more distinctness than when rapidly said with the words in
their common order. When so said it is well to make a momentary pause
after the Noun, which would be represented in English by a comma, as :一
on by >
A, 一 个 cyan, sam ko’, three men, or of men, there were three, or as to men, there
were three of them.
Note 1.—When the Classifier is used after the Noun it does not appear
before the Noun as well.
Note 2. 一 When a Classifier is used after a Noun whether it forms in this
connection a Compound Noun, or is still simply a Noun and its Classifier, it
sometimes happens, in order to enumerate the number, a Numeral and a Classifier
again require to be employed; in such a case the same Classifier is never
employed again, as :一
案件 一 = on?-kin2，yat tsung， on at |
Wy syat, tsung, one case at law.
5 )
船 位 E 个 cshiin wat*, yat, ko’, one seat on board a boat, (your place on
board a boat, or ship that your passage entitles you to).
It is also to be noted that if the order were to be reversed different Classifiers
would require to be employed, as :一
= 宗 案 件 yat, ctsung on’-kin?, and —~ 个 般 位 yat, ke: Shane
wai? *
CLASSIFIERS. 47
CLASSIFIERS.
XLIII. If an Adjective is used with a Noun accompanied by a Classifier
and Numeral, the Adjective is placed between the Classifier and the Noun,
as :一
二 46 大 fy yat, chek tai? shiin, « (C.] large ship.
oO =
XLIV. Adjectives and the Adverbs which qualify them, when unaccom-
panied by Numerals, precede the Classifier, as :一
大 {si 人 tar? ko” cyan, a large man, or an adult.
好 长 eS 街 “ho cch'éng ,t'ia kai, a very long street.
= = °
XLV. When a Demonstrative Adjective Pronoun is used, as well as an
Adjective, the former precedes the Classifier and the Adjective or Adjectives
immediately precede the Noun (see Note to XLVI.), as:—
个 ifs 长 Far ko’ cchang cch'ong ‘yi, that [C.] long chair.
we Bh HK AL a ai po? tai? chung (shi, this [C.] large red book.
XLVI. When two Adjectives are used without any Numeral to qualify
the Noun, the Classifier may come between the two, as:—
大 bbe 长 yf tai chong ch‘éng ‘Vi, « (C.] large, long chair,
SE See pe eens ;
pl at 件 再 色 KB ko sai kin 33 engt shik | sham, that small, {C.]
blue-colouved jacket.
Note.—It will be seen from the last example that XLV. has exceptions.
NLVII. But it is often better to put the Adjectives together, especially
when a Demonstrative Adjective Pronoun is used, as:—
一 这 A
4 件 多 青 色 箭 ko’ kin” sai ts'engt-shik (Sham, that [C.] small,
dark-blue jacket.
XLVIII. When a Numeral is used the Classifier either takes the first
position after the Numeral, the Adjective then following it and preceding the
Noun, or the Classifier comes after Numeral and Adjective—(see \LIX.) as:—
一 [A] 大 屋 yar Han tai? uk), a large house.
E 大 疝 屋 tai? kan uk a large house.
XLIX. When, however, the Adjective expresses Nationality it invariably
immediately precedes the Noun and follows the Classifier, whether a
Numeral Adjective appears in the sentence or not, as :-—
一 ~ 个 rm 人 yat, ke near cyan, an (C.] Englishman.
mK] ate] BFA “ko ko” cl ong-.yan, that [C.] Chinese.
CLASSIFIERS.
CLASSIFIERS.
L. The Demonstrative Adjective Pronoun and Classifier are often used
together before a noun, the commonest combinations of the two being
WE TA ni ko’ and Kf) (4 ‘ko ko’.
Note 1.—Some Dictionaries give these two forms as this and that, which
‘ F : >
however, is incorrect. The We ea represents the English ‘this,’ 个 ko’ cannot
be translated, unfortunately, according to our ideas. WE (ni cannot always be
used alone, but must often be accompanied by a Classifier. 个 ko” is a Classifier
and, being one of the commonest in use, has been supposed by Europeans to be a
part of the word this, or that, as the case may be. That this opinion is erroneous
and the view here enunciated is correct, the change of classifiers before the different
classes of Nouns will show, for this change is still carried out when they are used
with we cai and 何 ko’, and the use of WE ai and tél ko alone before a
certain class of Nouns also proves it, as:— Ee 回 chi wal, this time, ti 时 ko
shi, that time. 7
Note :一 呢 ni and 个 ko are used alone before Nouns of time and
¢
. >
place, as above, without the need of any Classifier. 个 ko’ can be used alone
; > :
oftener than We ci, as: 一 个 人 ko cyan, that man. It is often best rendered
by the in English.
Note 3. 一 When more emphasis or rather more distinctness in pointing out
¢ F ; Dias
the particular object meant is required the 个 ko is repeated, as, however, the
ee >. Pee
reduplication of 个 ko, i.e., 个 个 ko ko’ is used to mean every, euch one, or all,
to prevent mistakes the former of the two, when oneis to bea Demonstrative
Adjective Pronoun and the other a Classifier, is put into an upper rising tone
< > ‘ : ; :
as tifa] 个 ko ko and consequently written in a slightly different form to indicate
that it is a colloquial word. Note the difference between the two, as :一
个 个 ne EE me ia ke Shai shi’ lok ， all ave (every one, or each one, is) here.
pl 个 (人 ) ne EE 咯 “ko ko van “hai shi’ loky, that [C.] man is here.
Remark.—It will be well for the learner to bear the above remarks in mind, or
else he will commit many egregious errors. Yor example it will be quite correct
| “Who did this?’ 1 i ko” i
when asked o did this?’ to reply We 个 人 Di ko yan or We 个 Li
ko? simply; for él ko’ is a Classifier that can be used with 人 yan; but it
van;
would be incorrect to say in answer to, ‘Which piece of thread did yon drop?’ to
ee) Ds :
say pee, 个 ai ko’ ; for 个 ko is not the proper Classifier for thread, 休 tid
must be used in this case.
CLASSIFIERS. 49
CLASSIFIERS.
LI. The Classifier must be used with WE ni, but 个 ko’ can be used
€
alone, as :一
WE fal EE, au (kan uk, this (C.] house.
个 EB, ko? uk), that house.
Exception 一 中 ai (as well as 个 ko’) is used alone before common Nouns
of Place and Time.
LII. When the Demonstrative and Classifier are thus combined it often
happens that the Classifier is dropped in the Plural, ng ti*, the Plural
o
addition to He ni taking its place, as :一
WE 4 fey, om chek | Shin, this [C.] ship.
Be nny 船 at cca cshiin， these ships.
i) S ta , “ko pe sh 证 ， that [C.] tree.
响 ney tal, “ko ot shit’, those trees.
LIII. If, however, the Classifier is retained in the Plural, it is then
necessary that it should either be preceded by a Numeral, or that the word
3 “kéi, several, should be used between the Demonstrative and the Noun,
as i—
we 3 4E 56 , cn “Kei chek | ‘kai, these several [C.] dogs.
网 .2 a -
= 十 部 = : Sam-shap, po (shit thirty [C.] books.
LIV. A Classifier may be used alone without its Noun. This is the
case when the Noun has been already used in the sentence or in a preceding
sentence. Or even if the context shows plainly who or what is spoken of,
then the Classifier may be used instead of the Noun, in which case it is best
rendered in English by ove. The Noun may then be dropped and its place taken
by its appropriate Classifier, the Classifier being used in this way as in English
we might use an Adjective substantively, or a Numeral Adjective without its
Noun, or a Personal Pronoun, or the Indefinite Pronoun one, as:—
个 和 焦 船 好 大 4 : ko” chek | cshiin “ho tai? chek ， the [C.] vessel was a
very large one [C.].
4y H8 BA WB, AF = TH BB, “ve “kei to* yan dai? “Yai sim
2
ko’ (lai. How many men came ? There were three (C.] came.
有 — 14 时 做 [ee Hit 日 ， Syat yat, ko” kid’ tsd? cCh'an R Yat,,
there is one [C.] called Ch‘an A Yat
50 CLASSIFIERS.
CLASSIEFIERS，
LV. The Classifier is often used where in English the Indefinite Article
would appear, as :一
= 个 nau SE 个 月 sam ko” ngan _ts‘in* ko” ylit,, three dollars a month.
Sere r¢ € < 2
Remark.—The Rules given above are equally applicable to the Genuine
Classifiers as well as to other words such as ‘pair,’ etc., commonly miscalled
Classifiers when used in Chinese.
LVI. List of Classifiers and other words used before nouns.
1. ‘Chan 38 is applied to lamps, etc., as:—
& es
= 38 VE yat, chan (tang, or utang， a [C.] lamp.
-一 3g K 5 yat、 “chan ‘fo, a (C.] lighted lamp.
Note.—The Classifier 36 ‘chan after RE tang, /amp, i.e., used in com-
F ，
a ¢ F
bination with it, as: 38 utang- chan, forms a Compound Noun. It is the
name given to the saucer-like portion of a Chinese lamp which holds the oil and
wick.
a 38 YH , vat, “chan cyat a lamp-saucer full of oil.
2. Chek | 4 is used for boats, ships, birds, animals, the hands, the feet,
plates, balls of opium, etc., etc., as:—
== 4 手 ， sam chek | ‘shaa, a [C.) pilfever.
大 46. FHS tai chek | Shin, a large [C.] ship.
N 46 烟 HE : pat, chek | ayin* qnai*, eight [C.] balls of opium.
ads ee ae eee
46 本 地 狗 ， yat, chek | pan téf (or téi°*) ‘kaa, a [C.] native dog.
Note.—The sense must be thought of in using Classifiers. 个 ， ko’, is not
appropriate with 能 人 ，chung cyan, a bear, but Cs chek |.
ne AY «chi is applied to sticks, walking sticks, muskets, etc., pencils,
pens, flowers, branches of trees, pieces of ginseng, cinnamon, etc., etc., forks,
lamps, flags, masts, flagstaffs, candles, incense-sticks, a band or body of
soldiers from two upwards, oars, etc., as:—
= 一 AY = , yat, chi Pat,, w [C.] pen, or [C.] pencil.
B ¥
2 AY 花 ， yat, chi fa a [C.] flower.
Se ee |
< AY Fi) AX, yat， chi shi oot , 4 [(C.] branch of a tree.
CLASSIFIERS. 51
CLASSIFIERS.
4. Chong aa is used with 事 情 sz ¢ts‘ing, an affair, a concern, ‘where the
object of the speaker is to speak specially of one matter amongst anumber. Itis
a means of particularising.’ ‘ 件 kin? is much more common with 事 情
2 .
SZ <ts ing.
5. ,Ch‘ong HK, a bed, is used with coverlet, mattress, and very rarely
with carpet, as:—
—— Uk 78, yes cch' ong yuk,*, a [C.] mattress.
6. Chong ifs though it means to spread out is not applied only to
articles that we might consider to be spread out, such as sheets, table-covers,
mats, documents, letters, newspapers, (where the latter are unsealed or opened
out, not closed in envelopes, or wrappers, etc.) curtains, carpets, beds, tables ;
but also to chairs, stools, etc., as :一
一 =
— ife A fy 2, yat, _chong pat, .sin toi," an [C.] octagonal table.
— Ge Alife Fy, yat, chong shdii “yi, an (C.] easy chair.
4 BY I] ohe 新 iz #K ; “ta = ‘ko chong (san-man-chi, open out that
[C.] newspaper.
Note.—Though by rights te chong is the classifier that ought to be used
with (8 yet the practice is to employ #} fung, and it does not sound well to say
c
chong with the word letter.
7. Ch‘éng HB is used for matters, or business, etc., as :—
一 a 好 心 yok cch'ong ‘ho- sam, a [C.] good action.
¢ <
<
打 一 一 B BE , ta yat, _ch‘éng kaa", to have a (C.] fight.
打 —— ye EB 府 ， “ta yar. cch 6ng mn “fa, to take a [C.] case to Court.
8. Nan Chit is applied to cash, or incense sticks, games of fan-
t‘an, etc., as :一
x >
— Jj at chi _ts‘in*, a pile, or heap, or lot of cash.
KE BE, yat, chi ， b p, or lot of
» 2 i
一 一 | at chi hdéng*, a cluster of incense sticks
KE 香 vat, chi hong f
LY > . Ht
一 一 | at chi t'an*, a game of fan-tan.
fe FYE, vat, chi’ tant, a game of f
Note.—The above are not, strictly speaking, translations of this Classifier ;
but only the words which would be used in place of it in English.
52 CLASSIFIERS.
CLASSIFIERS.
9. Far’ Bi is used with cloth, leaves of trees, or plants, mirrors, stones,
wood, iron, copper, paper, etc., as:—
ge? and oo 7
— Hi vis) FE yat, fai shi yip,, a [C.] leaf.
二 ip 本 : yet far muk,, @ piece of wood.
— pit Ay » yat, fat shek,, a piece of stone.
Note.—The second and third examples approximate to the English use.
10. Fuk, thy is applied to walls, pictures, maps, pieces of ground, cloth,
etc., as:—
— ibe 田 了 yar. fuk, tin, a [C.J field.
os tbs 字 ， vat, fuk, tsz”, a (C.] scroll.
— ti ee es , yat， fuk w*, a [C.] picture.
Cr . : : : . On
Fin SR is applied to sections, or articles of laws, treaties, petitions,
business, news, cash, cases in Court, etc., as:—
oy HR 事 ， yat, “fan sz”, w [C.] matter of business.
《 了 站
一 一 HR AE OS i, ee fan shangt yi, @ [C.] business.
一 - EK 链 ， 十 “fan zis'in*, one kind of cash.
— HR 案 件 5 yat, “fan on’-kin?*, a [C.] case (in Court).
12. - ung #} is used for letters and despatches, etc., as:—
2
一 一 = = t f ; : ;
#} (8, ya ne ung sun ,a [C.] letter
— = t ff - shi ;
封 Bl =e ya we ung cman (shi, a [C.] despatch.
13. ‘Ha ip is used for sighs, and in a number of phrases where short
periods of time are expressed, as:—
AN x= ©, © pig ae? q
ne} —_— ip HL, tat ve “ha héi’, to give a [C.] gasp, or sigh.
C 2 : 和
14. Hai [J is applied to small arms, to knives, swords, etc., and
individuals, as :一
>
= 口 对 面 28 yat、 ‘haa tour -min sit’ ov sia *, a [C.] revolver, or pistol, etc.
—-DAD WB, yat, ‘haa lak, ‘haa glint (or lim*), a [C] sis-barrelled
vevolver,
>
YA 带 AF, Swift ean “hat, to kidnap human beings (C.].
CLASSIFIERS. 53
CLASSIFIERS.
口 人 vat, “haa yan, an (C.] individual.
口 ey HE ‘ yat, “hat ea wok,, an [C.] ivon cooking pan.
口 剑 yat “had kim’, a [C.] sword.
口 JJ . oom “hat ae three [C.] knives.
|
|
[Il |
15. ‘Hdm 砍 is applied to cannon, gingals, etc., as:—
一 一 砍 大 Kes ‘ yat “ham tai? pat, a [C.] cannon.
— 砍 #% 3B yat ‘hom tof ts'éng", a [C.] gingal, (etc.).
16. K& (ea is used with fire-engines, carriages, jinrickshas, etc., as:—
7 ¢
一 一 t ka ("ma hi ; . ;
Ki (5) 车 ， Sat one ("ma) Poe? [C.] carviage
二 tia Ge, r
需 水 Hi, yar. ka shot ch e, a [C.] five-engine.
17. Ka’ an is the Classifier of screens, pictures, pier-glasses, and
whatever is framed, as:—
— 7p 大 $a, yet ka tai keng t, a [C.] mirror.
18. Kan fa is applied to houses, or shops, and most buildings, rooms,
monasteries, convents, temples, etc., etc., as :—
— 疝 屋 , yat, kan uk,, a [C.] house.
一 [A] i, yat, kan po’, a [C.] shop.
+4 ffeil Fe, ts‘at, (kan zfong*, seven [C.] rooms.
KA py fal ; fia “hai ‘ko (ban oteng*t. in the (C.] sitting room.
Exception.—Do not use 间 (kan before the word pagoda, but 座 tso?.
1g. Kin? 件 is used for articles of clothing, matters of business, goods,
such as balls of opium, cases in Court, cushions, etc., etc., mirrors, etc.,
as :一
_ 件 事 , yat, kin? sz’, a (C.] matter of business.
件 x2, yat, kin? sham", a [C.] jacket.
一 一 件 案 yat, kin? on, a (C.] case in Court.
aa 件 I MK, yat, kin? muk, “pan, a [C.] board.
20. Ko 个 ， fA, 个 is used before the common names of the human
species and many inanimate objects; no definite rule can be laid down as to
its use. On the other hand it is absurd to say that it can be used with
‘other substantives when the correct classifier is unknown.’
54 CLASSIFIERS.
CLASSIFIERS.
个 人 ， yat, ko? cyan, a [C.] man.
— 个 $a , yat, ko” chung™, w [C.] bell.
a1. ‘Kin 4s is applied to pictures, maps, plans, books, as :一
= As F (shi “kin, books.
sss As 地 理 al, yat, “kan téi? “es ct'o @ [C.] map.
Note.—Really in usage this last sentence means an atlas and ba fuk, is
used for map
22. ‘Kwin ee is applied to needles, pencils, fifes, flutes, flageolets,
pipes, water-pipes, quills, and tubular objects, etc., as :—
— 管 Bt, yat, “kwan ccham， a [C.] needle.
a 3 箭 ， yat, “kwan asia", a [C.] flute.
23. Man x is used for cash and coins, etc., as :—
= 文 BE, yat, jman* zts‘in*, a [C.] cash.
vane v4 银 SE , yat, man” cngan -ts'in*, a dollar.
24. Min? 面 is applied to gongs, looking-glasses, shields, etc., as :一
—_— 面 SE , yat, min2 clo, « [C.] gong.
—_— ww $5, yat, min2 keng’t, a [C.] looking-glass.
-一 面 fB 牌 Be , yat, min? ct'ang cp'ai tips*, a [C.] vattan shield.
WE Kir $e 石 3% 多 面 面 , Ni nap, tsiin’ shek, kéi to* min? min?* ?
How many facets ave there to this diamond ?
Note—3Me PE fA 7” FE TBD, “ket pin min? or kes pin? min?*,
several facets, can also be used.
Remark.— hy pe (or {B) 面 ‘long pin (or pin?) min2*, is a double-
faced man, while 一 (or 四 ) 便 (or ye or 面 ) 面 sam (or sz’) pin?
(pin oy min?) min>* a man who says one thing to one man and another to another ;
but = and 四 j s4m and sz’, are not much used in this connection and there
must have been three or four diverse statements respectively made for these
to be used. This is not the case with two, or with eight which is used in the phrase
NN i 光 pat, min? okwong， a man who pleases everyone, in whom all
delight, or a man of wide ability, able to turn his hand to anything and do it to look
well. AN i (or 漫 or 便 ) 面 pat, min? (or (Pin, or pin?) min?*, is very
seldom the form it takes. These phrases are applied to surfaces of material objects
such as a pane of glass, a board, a geometrical figure, the facets of a diamond, etc.
25. .Mtn al is applied to pieces of artillery, anchors, rudders, matters
of business, etc., as :—
CLASSIFIERS. 55
CLASSIFIERS.
aa, val Kel , yat, cman p'at’, a piece of artillery.
7 ) ,
一 一 门 生 意 ， yat，cmtn (shang yi’, w (C.] business.
== FA 事 ss, yat, cman sz yip,, @ [C.] matter of business,
26. Nap, aT is applied to seeds, grains, buttons, grains of sand, shot,
peanuts, fleas and other vermin, mites (of humanity), spots on the person,
etc., as :一
peer Ki $i, yat, nap, “nat, a [C.] button.
三 Kir FB, yat, nap, sing*, « [C.] star.
27. ‘Ngan AR is used with, or for, needles, lamps, nails, wells, etc., as:—
as AR Bt , vat, Sngan cham, « [C.] needle.
28. ‘Pa 把 is used for articles that can be grasped though not confined
to such things alone, as, knives, umbrellas, a head of hair, torches, a bunch
of chopsticks, sheaves of grain, or large bundles of grass, firebrands (both
literal and figurative), as :—
— 把 刀 ， yat, “pa to* 4 [C.] knife.
<= 把 aE , yat, “pa oche*, an [C.] umbrella.
Note.— —— bbe JJ yat, chong to* (or cto) as well.
29. ‘Pan Ag is applied to tableau vivant, as :一
5 板 色 , yat, “pan shik,, a set (C.] of tableau vivant.
30. Prat, pu is used for horses, etc., as :一
det pu & , Yat, piat, Sma, a [C.] horse.
31. Prin 篇 is used with essays of all kinds, as :一
a 篇 Rl 3 2 yat, pin cman chong, an [C.] essay.
Note 一 篇 ; (Pin, is here used in a different manner to what it is when it is
used with the word book, as :一 —~ 篇 Bo , yat, .p'in (shi. In this connection
it is not a Classifier but means a page of a book.
32. Po eS is used for trees, vegetables, etc., as :一
— cam Hi}, vat, Po shii2, a [C ] tree.
一 一 cam 荣 ， yat, (po ts'oi’, a (C.] vegetable.
33: Pio oii is used with bed, as :一
一 一 Si dk, yat, (pe cch‘ong, a [C.] bed.
56 CLASSIFIERS.
CLASSIFIERS.
34. Po* 部 is used for books, as 一
a) Cy ge x? vs
Ba 部 x, kéf po" shi, several [C.] books.
35. ‘Pin 本 is used for volumes of books, acts of plays, etc., as :一
a 本 =, yat, “pan shi, a [C.] book.
— 本 BE, yat, “pan he an act (of a play).
36. P‘ung” H& is applied to bad odours, and walls, etc., as :—
_ Be Be, yar. p‘ung? cts 6 a [C.] stench.
— pe 墙 ， yat, p'ung? cts'ang, a [C.] wall.
37. Shing Fe is applied to carriages, sedan chairs, etc., as :一
= fe Ps , Yat, shing kia? *, w [C.] sedan chair.
= Fe Hi, yat, ching chie, a [C.] carriage.
38. ‘Sho 所 is used with buildings, places, etc., as :一
— 所 AE cal , yat, ‘sho of" (or (fa) zyiin*, « [C.] garden.
39. Shi’ t gE is used with places, etc., as :一
— JE Mh A, vat, shirt te? fong, « [C.] place.
40. Tar Wy is used with walls, trees, etc., as :—
S a oe yat, tar cwat cts'6ng， a [C.] surrounding wall.
Pes arr |
eer m tal KX, yat, taf” shii muk,, a vow of trees.
ar 带 水 ， yat, tai? ‘shoii, a (C.] neighbourhood, or locality.
41, Tat, 管 is used for spots, or marks, etc., etc., as :一
一 一 (25 地 方 ， yat, tat, tei cfong， a (C.] spot, a place.
= 一 管 FAI Br, yat, tat, yan’ tsik,, 4 [C.] mark.
42. Tat A) is used as a Classifier of trees, as :一
一 一 cA) fa, yat, tad shii?, a (C.] tree.
43. ‘Tim 册 is applied to dots, spots, hours, drops of fluid, souls,
inspirations, actions of the mind, etc., as :一
ai 点 ae HL, yat, “tim cling <wan, 4 [C.] soul.
cence 点 ae 机 ， yat, “tim cling _Kéi, @ [C.] sudden inspiration, a happy thought.
= 点 好 ay, yat, “tim ‘hd sam, 4 (C.] hind heart.
CLASSIFIERS. 57
CLASSIFIERS.
Ae ‘Ting, TH, is applied to hats, caps, sedan chairs, etc., as :一
r= 1A is, yat, “ting kia? *, a (C.J sedan chair.
顶 a, yat, “teng t md>*, @ [C.] hat.
Note.—This word is often pronounced “teng. It is pronounced ‘ting or
“teng when speaking of a sedan chair; and “teng when referring to hat or cap.
It is, however, very generally in colloquial pronounced “neng when used with the
word hat, as :一 yat Sneng mo? * a hat. 过
45. Tp, Ha, is applied to charnis, plasters, etc., as :—
一 一 Hs 高 Pasi yat, tip, FEO yok,, a [C.] plaster.
46. ‘fa, &, is used for a handkerchief, a single stocking, a pair of
trousers, a road, a street, snakes, whips, girdles, fish, worms, rivers, pieces of
thread, sticks, pieces of wood, rattan, bamboo, reins, a single body or person,
a passage, or hall, in a house, villages, seas, etc., as :一
一 休 路 ,yat ia 187, a [C.] road.
= 一 es 河 ， yat, ct'fa ~ho, a [C.] river.
— 休 he, yat, tia (she, a [C.] snake.
ER gies any
休 FH yat, ct ia zy， a [C.] fish.
== 休 Hii, yat, tia fa’, a pair of trousers.
aaa 休 ae yat, <t'fé cch'ait, a piece of wood.
Note.—With regard to the last two examples, the first might be translated,
a length of trousers, that being the Chinese equivalent of pair when that word
is applied to trousers. In the same way the second might be rendered a length
of wood, or stick of wood, i.e., a piece of wood that is not simply square, or round,
or flat, but whose predominating quality is length.
47. “rs, or ‘To, Ze, is applied to flowers, flames of fire, or the flame
of a lamp, etc., as :一
es Cx
= 一 Ze 花 ， yat, to fa, a (C.] flower.
aw : -
= 一 ope. KR, yat, “ta fo, a (C.] light.
58 CLASSIFIERS.
CLASSIFIERS.
48. TS, 4, is applied to charms, Imperial commands, etc., etc., as :一
a ia 44, yat, to fa, @ [C.] charm.
aa 道 BE =F vat, to shing” ‘chi, an [C.] Imperial command.
—_ ia RL =o yat, to (man shi, uw [C.] despatch.
49. Td, 度 ， is not always applied to places over, or through which one
can pass. It is used for bridges, doors, an official residence, or office,
a despatch, seas, rivers, embankments, staircases, etc., as :—
-一度 1%, vt, to? ck'iti, a [C.] bridge.
= 一 度 4, yat, to? cman, a [C.] door.
一 度 海 ， yat, to? “hot, a [C.] sea.
度 楼 Bf, yat, to” laa tat, « [C.] staircase.
50. ,T‘oi, tz, is applied to theatrical plays, etc., as :一
~ 一 楼 iB, yat, tof het’, a [C.] play.
51. ,T‘ong, a is applied to curtains, suits, ladders, etc., as :一
— 党 Hex hk, yat, tong jman* chéng™*, (or chéng’), a [C.] mosquito net.
== a BA 横 ， yat，ctong t'ai wang, a [C.] ladder.
52. Tso’, JAB, is applied to houses, pagodas, temples, hills and moun-
tains, cities, idols (images), lighthouses, forts, etc., as :—-
oy 座 Js, yat, tsoz mia>*, w [C.] temple.
’ 2 pug
“一 座 J, yat, tso’ tap. a (C.] pagoda.
—_ 座 楼 ， yat, tso” zlai®, @ [C.] house.
— 座 inal ae yat, tsoz cts'2Z ct'ong”， (or <tong), an [C.] ancestral temple.
53: Tsin， FG, is used with idols, Buddhas, and sometimes with
cannon, as :一
= 一 Fa 佛 ， yat, tsiin fat,, a [C.] Buddha.
Note.—This Classifier is only used with the word cannon by literary men.
No. 25 is the one oftener and more commonly used.
es ma: ‘ a 和
54 .Tsung, 5%, is applied to cases in court, affairs, business, matters,
etc., as :一
—
事 RP, yat, ctsung sz" kon’, a [C.] matter.
案 件 ， yat, ctsung on kin?*, a [C.] case.
i St
CLASSIFIERS. 59
CLASSIFIERS.
Pe. aes " 2 :
55. Tin’, BR, or 端 ， Tin’, is applied to pieces of news, or pieces of
ground, essays, etc., as :一
eras B 54 -F- ) yat, tin? cman tsz”, an [C.] essay.
= Be ; yat, tin? “kwa, a [C.] story of olden times.
is applied to earth, cotton, snow, whatever can be held
in the hand, and harmonious feelings, good intentions, etc., etc., as :一
一 一 OR, yat, tin sin’, a voll of thread.
— HE, yat, vin chal, a lump of earth.
一 和 1 SR, yat, tin wor he ， a peaceful time.
W. x 5 ;
57+ ai*, 位 ， is applied to respectable persons, etc., as :一
= 位 无 生 ， sam wai* (or wai?) Sin Shang+， three (C.] gentlemen.
= 一 位 女 ZB, yat, wai* (or wai?) Snoii hak|*, (or hak), 4 (C.] lady visitor.
=e 位 mp, yat, wai? shan, a [C.] god.
— 位 =e be, yat, wai cpP' sat, aw [C.] idol.
— 位 管 府 ， yat, wai? ewan “fa, an [C.] official.
58. ,Yiin, BA, is applied to officers of government, as:—
= Pane eee ，
— BR B, yat, cginon tsiAt,, a (C.] judge.
3 员 K 差 ， yat, ,yiin yam chal, an [C.] ambassador.
59. ,Yin, fal, is applied to coins, as :一
eae Al $B, yat, cyin ngan*, @ [C] dollar
Note.—It may be noted that some of the above words had better not, in some
connections, be considered as Classifiers; but are sometimes better rendered in
English partitively.
LVII. Besides the above the following may sometimes be heard :一
1. (Chi, RR, as a Classifier of trees.
Note.—This is a book language Classifier; but it is occasionally used in
conversation by literati.
2; Kan, 根 ， as a Classifier of trees.
Note.—This is used by natives of other parts of China, and is not a pure
Cantonese use of the word.
6o CLASSIFIERS.
CLASSIFIERS，
LVIII. Avoid the following in Colloquial :一
i SMéi, EE, a tail, which is used in the book language as a Classifier of
Colloquial, 人 条， tit, should be used.
2. Fo’, HAY, a clod, used in the book language as a Classifier of pearls,
beads and similar articles. Kir, nap,, is the word which should be used in
the Colloquial.
3. Fong, FF, a square, is used in the book language as a Classifier of
squares of ink, inkstones, junkets of beef, mutton, pork, etc.
Note.—This latter however might be rendered in English by the words square,
or piece, and might be looked upon as a partitive construction.
LIX. The following is a list of words generally included in Lists of
Classifiers, but omitted in this book from the List of Genuine Classifiers
given above, and for the most part consisting of Nouns used partitively.
1. Ch‘an?, oe, is used with showers, times, noises, fits of temper, gusts,
puffs, and flashes of light, as :一 aoe
— [et 风 ， yat, chan” _fung, a gust of wind.
—_ pa 光 ， yat, chan? Kwong, a flash of light.
= i. iw ; yat, chan? yi, a shower of rain.
= 一 jo K Fi, yat, chan? ‘fo he ， a fit of anger.
2. Chat., AL, is used for rolls, or packages, bunches of flowers, bundles
of papers and letters, as :一
Ee ee
— AL AK, yat, chat, chi, a bundle of paper, or papers.
-一 AL 4b, yat, chat, of4* (or 4) a bouquet of flowers (i.e., a bundle of flowers).
{| #L HEF, “ko chat | ve, that bundle of things.
3's Chi’, VE, is used with regard to incense, as :一
= 一 Ve 香 ， yat, chi? hong”, a bunch of incense sticks.
4. Chitin’, 2 | , is applied to anything strung together, as a string of cash,
or beads, a’s :一
“一 证 珠 ， yat, ch'in’ cht". a string of beads.
CLASSIFIERS， 61
CLASSIFIERS.
5. Fo’, fall, is used for sets of beads, tools, buttons, bedding, writing
materials, bed-boards, coffins, etc., as :一
== 副 te Fy, yat, fa’ tof ‘vi, a set of chairs and tables.
—* 副 ap +8, yat, fa? ka? cch'ang， a set of implements.
二 一“ 副 长 生 ， yat, fw cch‘ong shangt, a coffin, or set of coffin boards, (generally
applied to one when bought before death).
6. “Hong, 行 , a column of words, or row of objects, or men, etc., as :一
— she 2
一 -一 行 FF, yat, chong tsz*, @ column of characters.
7. ‘Kwa, Re, is applied to shares in business and heads of essays, etc.,
as :一
= 股 th, yat, “kwa fan?, a shave (in business).
~ 一 We 生 意 ， yat, ckwa shangt y?, a business of one share.
= 股 广 Bs, yat, wa cman (chong, a head of an essay.
8. Koi’, 人 , is applied to sentences, phrases, etc., as :一
名 rin an, yat, koi? shit, wa’, a sentence.
g. Kuk, 局 ， is applied to games of chess, to gentry, or a company for
public business, etc., as :一
一 局 ZK, yat, kuk, ket, a game of chess, but 一 一 党 百 HE, yat, tong
pak, sing?, the body of the people.
— 局 BA 名 全， yat, kuk, Shan k'am, the body of gentry.
to. .Kw‘an, 用， is used for droves, flocks, herds, crowds, schools, or
shoals of fish, flights of flies, etc., as :一
一 ae ti 羊 ， yat, kw'an emin zyong* (or yong), a flock of sheep.
ae RB iw, yat, ckw'an (wa oying*, a lot of flies.
_ at .kw‘an yan, a crowd of men. :
1 72855 rok |
|
|
|
II. Prat,, XE , is applied to pieces of cloth, silk, game, etc., as :—
— na 布 ， yat，p'at) po’, a piece of cloth.
62
CLASSIFIERS AND ADJECTIVES.
CLASSIFIERS，
I2， Pat, 包 ， is used for bales, bundles, or packages, etc., as :一
一 一 包 Eo yat, PE shi, a bundle of books.
= 包 KK Hn, yat, pat yi mat,, 4 bundle of clothing.
emer 包 货 yat、.paa fo, a bale of goods.
AN) 放生
13. Tam’, +H, is applied to burdens, weights, etc., as :一
二 +H 水 hi, yat, tam? shou ‘t‘ung, a pair of water pails.
二 一 +H $2, yat, tam? lo, a couple of carrying baskets.
as +H 货 Hy yat tam? fo” mat,, apicul of goods (i.e.,ahundred catties, or 133 lbs.).
Lees See) 2
Ss +H 出 IK yat, tam? (shan “shout, a load of hill water.
— ?
NK +H Be, pat, tam? t'4n’, eight piculs of coal (nearly half a ton).
14. Tow, BK, is used for a crowd of people, a flock of birds, or animals,
a school of fish, a fleet of ships, etc., etc., as :一
= BK 人 ， yat, toi? .yan, a crowd of people.
=f 队 4E B, yat, toii? ts6k。 Snit, a flight of birds.
2 BK fi, yat, toi? zyii*, a school, or shoal, of fish.
ab
a, Fe yat, toi? ping, a line of soldiers (five at least).
as, 5 PINS
ADJECTIVES.
LX. The Adjective, when used attributively, or predicatively, occupies
the same position in the sentence that it does in an English one.
Exception.—It is the first word in the phrase, or sentence, when the
principal, or only idea used is in regard to the quality expressed by the Adjective.
The Chinese habit of leaving out even the verb in a sentence accounts often for the
Adjective taking the foremost place, as:—
Bai) BE A, yit, kwo™* ¢t'ail, it is too hot.
长 得 路， cch‘éng tak, tsaf?, it is too long.
5g 咯 ， pz A i, “tin lok,, ¢m kat? ‘shai, it is short, theve is not enough for use.
Note.—The verb is not always necessary in Chinese when it is used predicately
in English, therefore the position of the Adjective with regard to the Noun shows
whether it (the Adjective) is used in the predicate or otherwise. When the latter is
the case it follows the Noun, and it precedes it when it is used attributively.
ADJECTIVES. 63
ADJECTIVES.
Exceptions.—The Adjective follows, as well as precedes, the Nouns in a few
cases in Chinese. In these cases the meaning differs according to the position of
the Adjective before or after the Noun.
Ear AY BF, ‘lai chi kon", dried li- ar Esa 术 ; kon Stat ochi*, a dry (without
chis (the dried fruit). juice) li-chi.
BE AR 就 ， clung Sngin LUkony dried wy, HE AR, _kon lung “ngan*, dry lung-
lung-ngéms (as above). ngans (as above).
ffi 生 ， cyl Shang, @ dish composed 生 ffi : (Shangt gi", fresh fish.
of uncooked fish dished up with
condiments is so termed.
LXI. The Comparative Degree of Adjectives is formed by the word
nag, oti*, being added to the Adjective, as :一
hs ee '
好 ， hd, good, ky ne, ho .ti*, a little better, or better.
Note.—This might be called a qualified Comparative; for it is limited in
its meaning and does not have the fulness of meaning of the English Compara-
tive. It also differs from the Comparatives given below. In common conversa-
tion, however, its limited meaning is often lost sight of.
LXII. The words 更 ， kang’, or 重 ， chung’, are prefixed to the Adjective
in its Positive Degree and often in its Qualified Comparative Degree, and
form a Comparative, being identical with the English Comparative, as :一
大 ， tai, large; 更 大 ， kang’ tai, or 更 大 Wey, kang? tai ti ， larger.
Note.— if], oti” isalso used after the Adjective sometimes when Ff ,kang?,and
重 ， chung?, have already been employed before the Adjective, as 一 更 好 ney,
kang’ “hd ati®, 重 好 084, chung” “ho ti better. These forms are both quite
admissible and in common use.
LXIII. What French Grammarians call the Comparative of Equality
is expressed in Chinese as follows :一
a ent, ko” chek | kom? tar, (or tai* or otai*) as lavge (or as small) as that one.
KE VIDE nh fe ; “ho Stsz (ni ct 组 kom? cch'éng, (07 zch'éng™, or _ch'éng*)
as long as this one, (lit. like this one so long, or so short).
LXIV. The Repeated Comparative is often rendered by AK, yut,, as :一
越 大 aK KF, yit, tai? yt, ‘ho, the larger the better.
Note.—That it is to be rendered in English by the Definite Article the and
the Comparative.
64
ADJECTIVES.
ADJECTIVES.
LXV. The Repeated Comparative is sometimes rendered without the
越 ， yit，the juxtaposition of the two Comparatives showing well enough
what is meant, as :一
大 nRy 好 nay, tai2 aoe “ho oti*, the larger the better.
Note.—It is perhaps as well or better to render the above, as, it would be better
to be larger.
LXVI. The Superlative Degree is formed by prefixing 至 ， chi’, JA, ‘ting,
ffx, kik,, or 上 shéng’, to the Adjective, as :--
长 ， cch'ong,， long ; 至 长 ， chi’ cch‘éng, longest.
cree : Te
好 ， hd, good; TH 好 ， ting “hd, the best.
分 ， eval, bad; fo WF, kik, ai， the worst.
ica : 239 Cass
好 ， ho, good; 上 好 ， sh5ng- “hd, the best.
Remark.—The last form is also used as a Comparative, as :一 ELS, shangz
fo’, superior goods.
2 Gus. 43 hors :
Note 1.— 第 — 好 ， ta 他 yat, hd, literally, ‘No. 1 good,” is sometimes
used when in English we would say, the best.
Note 2.— +4 shap, fan, used before an Adjective should be rendered by
? =
very and the Superlative Degree, or the latter alone as the sense may direct, as :一
十 Af 3B, shap, (fan ‘yan, very fay, or very far indeed.
十 Af Kf, shap, fan “ho, very good, or the best.
Note 3.—In a sentence with a Verb best is better relegated to the end of the
sentence though it is permissible to put it at the beginning, as :一 全 好 路 做 ，
chi? Sho comtso or WEY fA FE HF PR, ‘kom ts0* chi? Sho lok,, or Ai 好 ，
HR 做 , kik, Sho hai? ‘kom tsd*, or WY TAK 1% Hie Hf, ‘kom ts hai
kik, ‘ho, it is best to do tt so, or to do it so is best. But with + 分 hf, shap, fan
‘ho, and 第 一 一 好 ， tai? yat, ‘ho, and JH KF, ‘ting “ha, it must be placed at
the end.
The reason of 十 Ap, shap, fan, being thus employed is that, the decimal
system being in use amongst the Chinese, ten parts, or division of any thing form
in a Chinese mind the idea of completeness: so 十 Af 好 ， shap, fan ‘hd, gives
a Chinese the idea that whatever is spoken of in that way is completely, entirely—
in all its tenths, which go to make up the whole, good; or rather that the quality of
goodness is, as it were, divided into ten parts, certain things to which the quality of
ADJECTIVES， 65
ADJECTIVES.
goodness appertains only possessing certain tenths of this goodness, whereas the one
to which 十 Ay, shap, fan, is applied possesses the goodness in its fulness of
ten parts. It is curious to notice, however, that exaggeration has rendered it
necessary to introduce a still stronger form than + Af, shap, fan, when the
latter form expresses, as above stated, completeness: completeness, or entirety,
having been used in an exaggerated sense when it was not strictly applicable,
a still stronger expression has been felt to be necessary to express the idea of
completeness, or entirety, in a higher or the highest degree, hence the phrase
十 ees Ay (KF), shap, yiz fan (hd), which might be rendered by the very
very (best).
Remark.—The Adjective itself undergoes no change, it will be noticed: this
will best be seen by literally translating the forms which represent the Comparative
and Superlative Degrees in English, as :一
好 : Sha, good, 好 [的 ， Sha oti*, good a-little-more ; 更 好 ， kang’ “ho, more good.
十 rer Af 好 ， shap, yz fan “ho, twelve parts good, etc., etc
LXVII. When the word than is used in English with a Comparative,
the Adjective in Chinese need not be accompanied by any sign of the
Comparative Degree—the than showing conclusively that it cannot be put
into the Positive Degree in English, as :—
a 过 中 个 ， (kon kwo? ‘ko ko’, dryer than that (one).
Note.—According to the genius of the Chinese language there is no necessity,
when the sense is shewn plainly enough by the context, to add words. One reason
of this may be that a multiplicity of little words has a tendency to obscure the
meaning in a monosyllabic language devoid of inflexion and conjugation.
At the same time both Oe. ti and 更 ， kang’, may be used as well when
» > P
a, kwo’, appears in a sentence, as :一
更 大 过 WE ney, uf, kang’ tai? kwo? oni 。 tit, ti*, larger than these.
长 过 ital 个 哟 ，. ch'ong kwo? “ko ko” oti*, longer (or a little longer) than that—
(one).
更 大 过 伍 OBE ney}, kang’ tai2 kwo? k'dit ke’ oft®, farger than his (or rather
larger than his).
i* kang’, often gives more force to the Comparative
The use of nf, ot” and 更 ， g g f
when used with 8 kwo’, forming to some extent a Comparative of Intensity, as
c ’
opposed to a simple Comparative.
网
66 ADJECTIVES AND NUMERAL ADJECTIVES.
ADJECTIVES.
LXVIII. Many Adjectives are formed from Nouns by the addition of
IER, ke’, as:—
r d : > ;
Hi 国 ， Ying 了 wok。， England. ra IF Ying Kwok, ke , English.
Note 1.—The IB, ke’, is, however, often dropped, and it is often better to drop
it when the Adjective is used attributively, as :一
英 人 ， (Ying Kwok, yan, an Englishman.
HL 国 BF, Ying Kwok, ‘ye, English things.
ek whet ‘ 5)
Note 2.—When used predicatively, however, it is better to retain the ner ke’,
as .—
{Bp t& Ha OF A, Skit hai? (Ying Kwok | ke? cyan, he is an Englishman.
Remark.—The ner, ke’, is sometimes useful in differentiating the meaning of
words, or terms, which might otherwise be confused together, as for example :一
大 人 ， Tai? cyan, His Excellency, I1is Lordship, etc., or it may be translated by
its primary meaning, that of a large or great man; but if 高 ， (ko be inserted any
ambiguity is gone at once, it cannot then be atitle, as 一 伍 t% 高 大 oy
人 呀 ， 和 ii has? (ke tai? ke cyan a, heisa gveat, or large, or tall man.
LXIX. The Chinese always say ‘new and old’ and not ‘old and
new,’ as :一
新 但 wy (#5), oan Kat? Yok, (Shi), the Old and New Testaments, lit. New
Old Convenants (or Convenant Books).
NUMERAL ADJECTIVES.
LXX. The Cardinal Numerals, given on page 3, are, strictly speaking,
the only Numeral Adjectives in Chinese, the other forms of Numeral
Adjectives being expressed by their combination with other words, or with
themselves. Those given at the beginning of the book will be sufficient
to guide the student in the use of these words.
Note.— a i shap,, ten, if meant in Chinese is often understood, or so
represented as to be understood. It may be omitted or not when used with other
numbers, the position of the figure which represents the number of tens plainly
NUMERAL ADJECTIVES. 67
NUMERAL ADJECTIVES.
showing that it must be tens and nothing else. When there is no ten shown in
English, say as in ror, the one is shown to belong to the units by the insertion of
& clengt between the two ones, as :一 —— 百 y= —, yat, pak. cleng+ yat,;
without it the figures would stand for 110, as :一 一 一 百 _, yat, pak, yat,. The
one, it will be noticed, is also omitted before figures, as :—hundred and one instead
of a or one hundred and one.
LXXI. In speaking of time an ambiguity may arise as to whether
for instance the speaker means ‘half past one’ or ‘an hour and a half’
unless something else is said as well which will show clearly what is meant,
as:
Ges ; ,
ee 点 $a, yat, tim chung*, which may mean, one o'clock, or one hour.
Note. 1.—To make sure as to which is meant it is often as well to ask
questions similar to the following :一 个 Jae 时 ¥J nH -一 Bh Ga 未 呀 、
Ko” chan? Shi (or hi") “ta Scho yat, “tim ochung* méi2 4’? Had it struck one
， | 2
o'clock then? To be followed by the questions, 路 您 — 点 ME, kom hai
yat, ‘tim lok .? Then it was one o'clock ? t% 要 成 Bi Sa Be 做 I,
Hai yia’ sheng t “tim chung* (lai ts6* mé? Did it take a whole hour to do? If in
the latter case this is not what was meant, the answer will be something like the
following, pz {% ; 个 阵 时 if 二 Bh oa WA> < hai? : ko? chan? shi
3 a 1
‘ov -shi*) hai- yat “tim chung* che*, no, it was one o'clock then.
< ya, ° g 。
Remark.—It is by such methods that one has to resolve the precise facts out
of what seem ambiguous statements in Chinese.
Note 2.—At the same time it must be remembered that where there seems
no want of clearness in the English context, the contrary may be the case in
Chinese, owing to the want of tense and other matters incident to the language ;
so it is better that the foreign student should use some word or phrase, when a
certain length of time is meant, to show without doubt to the Chinese hearer that
such is the meaning and that an hour of the day is not intended.
Note 3.—A reference to the old English style of stating the hour and its mean-
ing will show the Chinese idiom, which is the same ;—e.g., seven of the clock, ie.,
seven hours of the clock, or seven strokes of the clock, as it is in Chinese.
68 NUMERAL ADJECTIVES AND DATES.
NUMERAL ADJECTIVES.
LXXII. The same order is observed in the construction of a phrase
representing time on the clock, etc., as in phrases denoting weights, etc.,
as :- 一
W 点 件 ， luk, “tim pin’, half past six.
八 点 Ge) << (个 ) 7, pat, “tim (kwo’) yat, (ko’) kwat,, a quarter past eight.
五 四 个 字 ， Sng ‘tim sz? ko? tsz2, or th EY 5 pM, Sng Sem tp, ae,
twenty minutes past five.
= Eye (过 ， or 2) a 个 yey ARE, 4m “tim (kwo?, or lengt) shap, ko?
<
omin* DeET，te7 minutes past three.
LXXIIlL. 多 AP, to ‘shit is often used in Chinese when speaking
approximately of a number and has the sense of more ov less ; or it may be often
rendered by some, or a few, with a nearer approach to the idea in the Chinese
mind when using it. When used with a definite number it may also be
rendered by thereabouts, as well as by move or less, as :—
有 多 ay nA KB, Syat cto ‘shia Shai shi’, there are more ov less, or there ave
a few, or there ave some.
LXXIV. The Ordinal Numerals are represented in Chinese by the use
of 第 ， tai?, with the Cardinal Numerals, as :一
ey 2
第 =, taf yat,, first (or No 1).
Note :一 个 ， ko’, is often used after them ; it may be used, however, or not
with all of them.
= a ad . —s
Note 2 一 第 tai“ yi*, is also used to mean ne#t, or another, as 第
aa ds
个 A, tai? yi ko? yiit,, next month, or another month.
DATES.
As the Ordinal Numerals are largely used in dates it may prove useful
to the beginner to have their combination with other words noted.
Note.—That in Colloquial there are no distinctive names for the days of the
week, or month ; but that like Quakers the Chinese largely use the Ordinal Numerals
for this purpose. In speaking of years they are commonly called the first, second,
and so on years of such and such a reign, though the cycle of sixty years is also used.
DATES. 69
DATES.
LXXV. In giving the date the Chinese invert, according to our ideas,
the order of the words. The year comes first, then the month, and finally
the day, as :一
fa 38 4B NAS, Dong che shap, eof pat, yiit, shap, (sim,
the thirteenth of the eighth moon of the tenth year of T'ung Chi.
四 月 AN 5, sz” yiit, chio ts‘at,, the seventh of the fourth moon.
Note.—That, as in English, it is not necessary, when it is quite plain from the
context that the day of the month is meant, to say day; the word day is left out, as
in the sentences above. The Chinese carry this further than the English (though
we say two and six), for the last denomination of anything mentioned, when others
are mentioned before it, is not expressed, the number of such a denomination only
being given, as :一
个 Ju gp SS, ko” ‘kat cngan ztsin*, one [C.] dollay and ninety (cents under-
stood), (lit. one [C.] nine silver cash).
Note.—The —, yat,, is not necessary before the dollars. If the dollars are
followed by cents the —, yat,, would be necessary, as 一 一 个 九 = yat, ko?
“kat hd, one doliay and ninety cents.
IK 链 —, pat, .ts‘in yat,, eight mace and one (candarin understood).
os
LXXVI. The word 初 ， ch'o， is used before the days of the moon (or
Chinese month) from the ist to the roth inclusive, and even if the word
month does not occur in the conversation, the use of this prefix shows when
the first ten days of the month are spoken of that the number which follows
it refers to a day of a month and not to anything else. Nothing is prefixed
to the numbers representing the remaining two-thirds of the days of the
month, as :一
AN Carat cho yat,, the first of the moon.
十 = : shap, 4m, the thirteenth.
LXXVII. It is very common to makea division of the month into three,
and when one is uncertain as to the exact day when anything occurred, etc.,
instead of saying in the beginning, middle, or end of the month, though all
ee = Cee
these terms are used, it is more common to say, 4] HE cho kéf, 十 3%,
oe 2 Su Gros ae: 2 Canines
shap, “kéi, and +h 3, ye", ov ya", kéi, or aN 3%, yi shap, kéi, as :一
AN 3% 47 Jal Be, ch'o ‘kei ‘té_fung kat, there was a storm in the xst decade of
< <
the moon.
我 十 到 ria 去 bee SEK, Tp, Sago shap, ef (fan hoi _kwai (hong Sha, I
returned home in the 2nd decade of the moon.
70 DATES.
DATES.
2 Dg Cn ho pot > ;
+ HE 有 回 音 wi, ye” (or ya") kéi “yaa wai yam kwa’, I think theve
will be an answer in the 3rd decade of the moon.
Note.—The beginning of the month is rendered as 月 BB, yat, tat.
The middle : . 月 中 ， yiit, chung,
(or chung”).
The end - . 月 尾 , yip Smét,
(or més").
Remark.— 月 FA, yit, chung, (or chung") also means in the course of
the month.
LXXVIII. The word 9, hd’, is used after any and every day of the
English month, and this when the word month occurs in the sentence shows
(sometimes the context will show it otherwise) that the number of which
号 ， ho’, forms a suffix refers to a day of the English month, as :一
mse BE, yat, ho? the first of the month (English), supposing that what has been
already said shows that it is a day of the month that is being spoken of.
wa 人 ae 号 ， (ving Syan ye ho2. the second of the English month (lit. English
man 2nd (day of month understood]). 黄 i, (ying lik, , is more refined.
cian A ( 份 ) eA 十 BE, ving yiit, (fan?) yet shap, hd”, the twentieth of the
English month.
， ， i (apd BI Ess
LXXIX. New Year's eve is called 年 Ht 呀 SK, cnin sa* 4° “man,
ie., the night of the thirtieth of the year, notwithstanding whether it really
is the 29th, or 30th of the month; for, owing to the Chinese month being
variable in its length (some months having twenty-nine days and others
thirty), it sometimes happens that the day that is so called is only the 29th
of the month. ”
LXXX. New Year's day is 年 初 —, .nin <ch‘o yat,, z.e., the first
day of the year.
LXXXI. A month of thirty days is known as 月 Fy, yut, tai’, a large
month, and one of twenty-nine as 月 yy, yit, ‘sia, a small month. These
are the respective number of days in a Chinese month.
Note.—It has already been said (See Dates under Ordinal Numbers No.
LXXIV), that the Ordinal numbers are employed in dates. It will, however, be
found that :—
(a.) With regard to years it is sufficient and more correct to say, for example,
同 4 一 年 ， <T'ung Chi? am chin, the third year of T'ung Chi, without
i 2 4 — er
using the 第 ; tai“, before the ey sam, etc.
(b.) With regard to the months of the year the same holds good, as:— AN 年
JN A, fam cnin pat, yit,, the eighth month of this year.
DATES. 71
DATES.
Exception.—This only holds good when Numerals are employed ; for example,
it is impossible to put 第 ， taf, before 1E, ching, as -—jE A, ching yit,, the
first month of the year. In fact, this month may be said to be the only one which
has a name, as above, applied to it in colloquial, for though iE, ching, may mean
the fivst when applied to months it is not a Numeral. It is worth noting that
iE, ching, thus used is in a different tone to what it is in when it is used otherwise;
then it is pronounced TE, ching’, It may further be noted that if the word
第 ， tai, is used before A, yit,, with a numeral and classifier, it should then
be rendered into English by the first month that, say, such and such a thing
happened, irrespective of whether it be the first month of the year or not. It is not
then to be considered as the first month of the regular year.
(c.) There is likewise no need to use the 第 ， tai, before the days of the English,
or Chinese month. Before the first ten days of the Chinese month it is
impossible to use it, as there is no place for it to come in.
(d.) 第 ， tat, can only be used in connection with the days of the week in the
following manner, as for instance, the third day of that week, (0 个 71 FF
第 = 日 ‘ko ko? Slaf pai? ta 他 (sm yat,.
LXXXII. The names of the days of the week are in Cantonese, as
follows :一
Sunday ne FE ( H )， Stat pai’ (yat,).). Thursday ne FF pu, Slat par sz
= Ge 汉人 a = 2
Monday 裕 拜 二 “lai pai yat, Friday te FF Th, 9ai pai Sng.
Tuesday ne FF ee Saf pai’ yiz. Saturday ne FE vot Sai par’ luk,.
Wednesday Te, tai pai sam.
LXXNIII. The ff, yat,, in ne FE A. ‘lai pa? yat,, can be dropped
whenever the context shows plainly that the te FF, Sas pai’, used alone
refers to the day and does not mean ‘ week,’ for ne FF, ‘lai par’, alone also
means ‘ week.’
第 个 FF ne Be, tai? ye ko? ‘las pat” jai, means, come next week.
Note.— The difference between Sunday and Monday when the H , yat,, is used
is very subtle to the ordinary uncultivated English ear: it consists only in a
different tone to the last word, as :一
Sunday je FF H, Sai pat yat,.
= 人
Monday ne FF o—, ‘lai pai yat,.
72 NUMERALS AND TIME.
NUMERALS AND TIME.
LXXXIV. The Distributive Numerals are represented in Chinese by
the reduplication of the Cardinal Numerals, accompanied by 个 5 ko’, as :一
— 个 — 个 I, yat, ko” yat, ko’ at, come one by one.
Note. 个 ， ov 29 个 ea 个 ， chuk, ko’, or chuk, ko™ chuk, ko™*,
is also used for one by one, or each by each.
LXXXV. The Numeral Adverbs, once, twice, thrice, etc., to be turned
into Chinese must be translated from their literal meaning in English into
Chinese, as :一
I did it once, i.e., I did it on one occasion, 我 做 过 — HE, Sago tso” kwo”
yat, chéng”
Strike him once, i.e., Strike him one time, 打 伍 Ce ip, “8 全 ,5 yat, Sha.
I have been twice, i.e., I have been two times, 我 于 Bl 两 村， Sngo hoi? kwo?
ong wan.
I have heard him twice, i.e., 1 have heard him two times, 我 ya {B 两 回 ne,
人 go _tengt Koi téng watt lo’
LXXXVI. Amongst expressions denoting time such as the following
are of frequent occurrence :—
The time it would take to drink a cup of tea, BR “一 aR 茶 Ht ny, ‘yam yat,
(pai chia kom’ nof*
The time it would take to drink a cup of hot tea, £R — Hh Be ny i,
aye
¢ re 1、 7 .3
yam yat, pai yit, cch'a Fom noi?*
The time it would take to eat a meal of rice, 食 “一 ZN aK nt iy, shik, yat,
ts’ an fan? kom’ noi*
The time it would take to eat a bowl of rice, 食 Bi #R ni int, shik, yat,
ener pe Dea A,
win fan" kom noi?*.
The time it would take to smoke a cigar, 食 一 一 a} KA nH ny, shik, yat,
Ghee SA gece a
hat yin* kom noi?*.
The time it would take for an incense stick to burn, 炊 a sa 香 nH iy,
>
hit ge a gas 5%
(shit yat, chi hong kom’ nof
Note.—The in, nof?, goes into the variant tone mostly. Where it would not
in such a connection would be when one said, 食 8 sa py inns a 等
二
得 th; shik, o an fan2 kom’ nof cm ‘tang tak, snéi, I cannot wait for you
as long as it would take to eat a meal.
| PRONOUNS. 73
PRONOUNS.
PERSONAL PRONOUNS,
LNXXVII. Personal Pronouns are often left out in a Chinese sentence.
Note 1.—Personal Pronouns of the rst and 2nd Persons are often understood,
the sense showing what person is meant, as in the 2nd Person of the English
Imperative, as :一
A ay 做 Be kam chia tso? dai, I dud it this morning.
做 Mw, tso>* lok, it is done.
Note 2.—The Personal Pronouns of the 3rd Person are often left out in a
Chinese sentence when it is well enough understood to what the sentence refers, as :—
个 nay % $B 蛋 ， EA pz 好 OB HB, ko” ee hai kat tan*; hai? a)
cha ke? lok,, those are hen's eggs; they ave bad.
Note 3.—All the Personal Pronouns are in the 下 LES ha? ‘shéng, or lower
rising tone, as:—FF, § “ngo, aes “néi, 1B, ‘ “k ‘di.
LXNXXVIII. When the Plural is shewn wh, téi*, is the sign of it, as :一
Cha oes (eee i
1B, k ‘Gi, he, she, or it; {BE pet, k‘Oui téim, they.
Remark.—Though Plural forms exist for the Personal Pronouns, the Singular
form is often used where in English we would use the Plural, especially when the
context shows that more than one is meant, as when more than one has been
already mentioned, as :一
at = 个 an 我 AN, Oil 4m ko” wa? Sngo coh, they three told me.
LNX XIX. When the Possessive is expressed DBR, ke’, is the sign of it,as:—
我 器， cgo ke’, mine.
XC. The Declension of the English Personal Pronouns are therefore
represented in Chinese as follows :一
First Personal Pronoun.
Singular,
I, 我 ， Sngo.
My, 我 ， or 我 np, Sn Sngo, or Sngo ke?
Mine, 我 npr, * Sngo ke?
Me, 我 ， cngo.
We, 我 qu, Sngo tei.
Our, 我 pe, or 我 地 dat Sngo te 人 ,or Sngo téi? ke’.
Ours, 我 et Lt, Sngo te ke’.
Us, 我 地 ， Sngo téi?,
Plural.
Dh ieee SE he a eee ey Bere
E
74
PRONOUNS.
PERSONAL PRONOUNS.
Second Personal Pronoun.
Singular.
You, 你 ， Snéf.
Your, $R, °° 你 OBIE, Snes, or Snes ke’.
Yours, 你 OBR, Snés ke’,
a er
You, th, néi. oR ily
i “ Phiral. . ;
> 下
You, 您 thi, Snéi téi?, S AS ，
Your， 你 iH, or 你 地 Ma Snes téi?, or Snéf té? ke’,
Yours, 478 Hh npr, Snéf tEf ke’.
You, 您 Ht, Snes te 人
Third Personal Pronoun,
Singular.
He, she, or it, 1B, 88.
His, her, or its, 1B, or {EA OER, Ski, or Sk'Oii ke?
His, Hers, or its, {EB OEE, S'3u ke’, (when used predicatively).
Him, her, or it, TF, ‘ksi.
Plural.
They, 1B, ov {B 地 ， Seat, or See tér2.
Their, {B Ht, or 1B 地 np Sou ter, or Sk'6it te 他 ke?
Theirs, (Fi, 地 npR, {koi ter ke”.
Them, {fi ‘k‘dii.
Caution.—The learner must not forget that the signs of the Plural and
Possessive may often be omitted.
Note.—The want of Gender in the Third Person occasions some degree of
ambiguity, as well as the often optional use, or rather disuse, of the signs of the
Plural and Possessive.
XCI. The Nominative of the Personal Pronoun with the Reflective
Pronoun is sometimes placed before or after the Verb and sometimes the
Verb is placed between the two, as in English, as :一
我 47 Al 已 ， Sngo “ta tsz? “kéi, I strike myself.
我 自 已 去 ， Sago tsz2 人 kt hai， I went myself, (lit. I myself went),
Note 1.—Note the difference between 我 打 自 已 ， Sngo “4 ts22 “Keéf,
I strike myself, and 我 BE 已 FT ( 1B), ‘ “ngo ts2? “kei “t4 人 对 ， Oi), I myself strike
(him), as in English. t% 47 我 自 已 ， ha 好 “ti Sngo tsz2 “kéi, it was I myself
who was struck.
PRONOUNS. 75
INTERROGATIVE PRONOUNS, OR ADJECTIVES.
XCII. There are several words which may be used in connection with
appropriate Classifiers to express the ideas conveyed in English by who, what,
or which. The Classifier appropriate to the object spoken of is always used
with them whether the Noun be employed or not. If the Noun is not
employed the Classifier may be considered as being used substantively. The
first word which may thus be used is 3, _Pin*, which alone in itself may be
taken to mean which, the words that are used with it showing whether it
means when used with these words which, what, or who, as for instance:—
Ee 个 ， Bin ko’. Here in the first place we must find out to what the
Classifier 个 ko’, refers. Is it a man, or men, who have been spoken of, or
who are referred to? Then 3, jpin*, must be translated either as who, or
which. If then it is some inanimate object, then it must be translated
by which. Likewise remember when doing the converse, i.e., putting one of
these English words into Chinese to get hold of the appropriate Classifier
for what is spoken about, as for instance if you want to say which table, or
the word which alone, referring at the time to a table, do not on any account
say oe 个， _Pfns ko’, for 1H, ko’, is not the Classifier to use with table, but
» 本 x =:
say 漫 ife, ,pin™ .chong.
Note.—Note that zB. pin*, is used with all the Classifiers just in the same way
oO
—_—_ + >)
as ——, __., =, Yat), yf, (sam, one, two, three, and all the other Numerals would
be used with all the Classifiers. This seems simple and plain enough and yet some of
our dictionaries for the use of English-speaking people learning Chinese have fallen
v roe bar a i
into the error of saying that ee 个 ， pin ko’, is who, or which!!! Why not say at
once that 一 一 个 ，yat) ko’, is one, and then add on each of the Classifiers in turn to
-一 、yat， and state, that ‘curious to say the Chinese have many ways of expressing
? >
one, in fact no less than sixty’? (For there are nearly sixty different Classifiers
> > 了 9
in Cantonese.) This would be as much the fact as saying that 渴 {si , Pin ko ，
meant who, or which. The importance of the matter is great and it is not one to be
thought of no consequence, and yet this class of mistakes is in daily use by
foreigners speaking Chinese, most egregious error though it be, thanks in part to
our dictionaries, which, if not in error themselves, are not explicit enough on this
and kindred points. The absurdity of the thing may be further shown by
. : % fn* ko’, for it is often used with the Noun
adding 人 ， a an, man on to ye 个 ， py ，
人 (yan, man, when referring to men (as it is with other Nouns when referring
?
to other objects), as: ie 个 人 ， _Pin* koz cyan, who, or which man, and then say
that these three words together mean whut.
76 PRONOUNS.
INTERROGATIVE PRONOUNS, OR ADJECTIVES.
XCIII. To form the Possessive Case, the sign of the Possessive nex,
ke’, is used, and whether it is intended to be applied to a person, or object,
the Classifier will again, to a certain extent if not entirely, show whether it
is to be rendered in English by the Possessive whose, or which. The ae
ke’, always follows the Classifier, the Classifier, however, as above, always
changing according to the object spoken about, as :—
ye 个 aE Pin* ko’ ke’? This may be whose? or the Neuter according to the
O
context, etc.
ye Pe mE, oPin* ching ke’? The Classifier here at once shows this cannot be
whose. The Classifier is one that is only applied to inanimate objects. It must
therefore be rendered by the Neuter in English.
Remarks.—In other words it may be said that who, which, or what, are expressed
in Chinese by ye, pin,” and that the Classifier, which is always present and
12)
which must always be the appropriate one, shows how it is to be rendered into
English, there being no ambiguity in Chinese, as the word ie, UPpin”， is common
to both Genders.
XCIV. The Plural of who, what, and which, is formed by adding ney,
_ti*, to the ye, _pin*, as — npg, =pin® (ti*. No Classifier is necessary in
the Plural, irrespective of whether persons, animals, or inanimate objects
are spoken of, as :一
ye nay XA, Pin’ oti* cyan? Which men ?
PE OQ fk WEE WE, Pine tit ts0? dai ni? Wao (plural) did it?
3 aN B Pin* tit k'am-shaa’ hait ni? Which animals are the
PEO BF BK 1% WE, pm:
ones ?
XCV. Before Nouns the names of things, which are capable of sub-
division without losing their distinctive character, the plural form is used in
Chinese where in English the subject in question would not be looked upon
from a grammatical point of view as an aggregate of small particles, each
having a singular character of its own, as it is in Chinese, as :一
ye ne 糖 {& AE, Pi tit tong hai? chi? Which sugar is it?
你 he ye ne) mK, ‘Nei tek, .pin* tit Smai? Which rice did you buy ?
PRONOUNS. 77
INTERROGATIVE PRONOUNS, OR ADJECTIVES.
XCVI. Another word is used to represent who, what, or which, viz. :一
也 ， mat,, but when it refers to any inanimate object the Noun, BF, ‘ye,
thing, always follows it. When it relates to a human being the Noun,
A, cyan, man, or the Pronoun, pf, ,shdi", invariably follows it. No
Classifier is ever used with it, as:—
Ay, fe fC WE, Mat, shout tso ni? Who did it?
4, 人 Be, Mat, -yan* clai? Who comes ?
4, 野 Ae, Mat, Se ni? What is it ?
XCVII. The Possessive, when 世 ， mat,, is used, is formed by affixing
the sign of the Possessive, DER, ke’. This is always placed after the Nouns,
A, cyan, man, or BF, ‘ye, thing, or the Pronoun ate, shoi*, who, as the case
may be, as :一
4, 人 吕 ， Mat, zyan* ke? ?)
也 ate 中， Mat, -shoii* ke? 2 Whose ?
Mat. ye ke? ni? What docs it belong it ?
BY MOE WE, Mat, eke
Remark.—The, 也 ， mat,, in conversation is often slurred over in pronoun-
ciation so that it sounds like mi (mih). It then takes (having no longer a final k,
and therefore not coming into the Lower Entering Series, or Ts Yap,, Tones)
the Upper Even Tone, or 下 平 ， shéng? cP'ing.
XCVIII. The Plural has the same form as the Singular.
Remark.—These three forms might be literally rendered, as :—
也 A, Mat, zyan*? What man? i.e., Who, or Which ?
tt, até, Mat, gshou*? What who? i.e., Which, or Who?
世 野 ， Mat, Sye? What thing ? i.e., Which ?
Note.— Though the objection is not so great with 4, mat,, as in the case of
漫 ， Pin*， to the dictionary way of putting these forms, on account of their use
being limited to the designation of men and inanimate objects, it is as well that the
learner should remember what the component parts of these phrases mean. He
should then be able to speak intelligibly and correctly. The dictionaries are not
full enough in their definitions under these words.
78 PRONOUNS.
RELATIVE PRONOUNS.
RELATIVES,
XCIX. The Relative can scarcely be said to be expressed in Chinese.
The sentences in which the Relative Pronoun occurs in English are generally
expressed in Chinese, as follows, the Relative being understood, as :一
我 就 fA 见 We 个 人 ， Sngo tsaa? hai kin? a ko’ cyan, this is the man
whom I saw.
{i [8] Be, BR A) 1 IB] BE WE, 0? kin uk,, tit, 18 ko? shan uk,
ni, the house which fell down.
¢
2h HE AE TH 47 DE BK, we Sngo .chi ko ko changt hi lok,
he who told me walked away.
Fe BR MH Ee BG BR AB WG, Sngo dees Sko chek, Sma tit, “td lok,
the horse that I rode fell down.
我 就 {& ai We 个 人 咯 ， Sngo tsau2 hai? “kong cni ko? cyan lok,
this is the man that I spoke of.
we 个 人 就 {& ey 我 OBR. , cni ko? cyan tsai? hai? cpong Sogo ke’,
this is the man that helped me. :
1 fe FR 1 BB DE, 1 PE AP HE HA BE MG, “ese se? “ogo
ko? po? cshii, Slater cm cts'ang “és _fan Sngo lok, he has not returned me the book,
which he borrowed from me.
4% TE fi OBE, ai? Sk-oii ts0? ke?, it was he who did it.
{2% {Bi ved HE EB OER, hai> Sk‘oi daf cni shi? ke’, it was he who came here.
Note.— IPR, ke’, it will be noticed, is about the nearest approach to the sign
of the Relative.
ADJECTIVE PRONOUNS.
DEMONSTRATIVE PRONOUNS.
C. We, chi, this, and 个 ， ko’, or XB], ‘ko, that. See previous remarks
on these.
CI. The Plural these, and those are He ney, a oti and 个 ned, ko? ti
CII. We ni, qi oti’ and 个 a4, ko? tis are, however, often used in
Chinese where the Singular form is used in English, viz. :一 before Nouns,
such as weather, sand, dust, flour, gunpowder, powders, wheat, grain, rice,
etc., the names of liquids and names of similar objects consisting of an
aggregate of infinitesimal particles, or in other words before Nouns
representing objects which are capable of subdivision without losing their
| distinctive character, as :一
1 一 --
ADJECTIVE PRONOUNS. 79
DEMONSTRATIVE PRONOUNS.
ne nag A504 tk, chi ,ti* yok, ‘san, this powder (medicine),
个 响 IK, ko? oti* “shou, that water.
Note.— WE, ni is used at the end of explanatory phrases, or clauses, and
seems sometimes to have the power of intensifying the Demonstrative, or to have
the meaning of the English word ‘ there,’ as :一
个 人 ， 个 高 个 AE , tf ne, ko? cyan, ko? ko ko? cnii hai2 lok, that
man, that tall one (there), is the one.
INTERROGATIVES.
CII. Which, and what are represented by ee, _pin®. The Classifier
appropriate to the Noun must always be used after 3B, pin*.
Note.—Some of the Dictionaries and Phrase Books are again in error here,
giving =e ; opin* ko’, as which. The remarks made previously with regard to
HE, an, and 个 ， ko’, apply here as well with regard to Pe, opin".
CIV. What is also rendered by 世 ， mat,, alone, or by 4, Hy, mat, ‘ye,
as:
你 ae 4, (or 4, BF), ‘Néf wa? mat, (or mat, Sye)? What do you say ?
个 年 有 世 事 He, Ko’ chin Sat mat, s2 qn? What events happened
that year ?
RELATIVES.
CV. Whosoever, whosesoever, whoever, etc., may be expressed in Chinese by
the use of several different phrases to convey the meaning of the English, as :一
ye 1H (or 是 但 ye 个 ) 做 都 要 办 便 ng, opin* ko? (or shi2
tn? pin* ko’) ts62 to yit? pan? Sk oii lok, whoever does this will have to be
punished.
TA PL fh she FE ee 1 FP Oe, TE TR BR AE Be, a?
fan ‘néi téi* shik, fong? Sk*dii tsou? ke”, Sk-dii ke? tsi? pit, péi? shik, fong’,
whosesoever sins ye remit they ave vemitted unto them.
CVI. The interrogative 也， Mat,? What? is placed after the rest of the
sentence instead of before it as in English when a Verb is used; but the
construction of the sentence is the same as in English (subject to Note 1)
when a Noun is used with it, as :一
4, 野 ' 事 ， Mat, Sye sz2? What is the matter ?
ai 4, Hy, “Kong mat, Sye? What are you saying ?
8o ADJECTIVE PRONOUNS.
RELATIVES.
世 Hy A Mat, Sve cyan? What kind of man ?
也 HY a 夫 ， Mat, Sye kung fa? What work ?
7a 43, By x, Tak, mat, Sye (shit? What book ave you reading aloud ?
Bp 世 BF, “Tat mat, Sye? What are you looking at ?
Note 1.—The verb is generally omitted in such sentences. It sometimes has
the force of conveying more emphasis to the sentence when brought in, but not
always, as :一
4, Hy 船 ， Mat, Sve cshiin ? What vessel is it ?
4 4, BF fry, Hai? mat, ve shin? What vessel is that ?
Note 2.—In Colloquial the 世 ， mat,, is very often changed into omi* in
pronunciation.
Note 3 一 世 ， mat,, is only used before A, cyan, man, and AE, hoi".
. . . 2 re
and it does not require a Classifier as ye, opin, does.
CVII. The impersonal there and it are left out in the interrogative form,
as :—
Gee tele
有 Ai, “Yah “m6? Is there, ov not?
RELATIVES AND INTERROGATIVES.
CVIII. Relative and Interrogative Pronouns must be rendered according
to the sense of the word, viz., which of the two, etc., as the case may be, as :一
Be PY Al 1F, Se 1H SEK AC HAE | EE WE, Ni Stong ko?
“tsai, pin* ko? ctsun vi fa? _ts‘an ke? “chi y? ni? Whether of them twain did
the wili of his father ?
DISTRIBUTIVES AND INDEFINITES.
CIX. The Distributive and Indefinite Pronouns, each, either, neither, any,
other, may be expressed in Chinese by the following words, or combinations,
as i=
aa (eee 5
Each, 每 ， =mui, as 一 每 个 到 wm, Smit ko? td’ lok, each one was there.
Note r.—Such unnecessary words as any are often left out in a Chinese
sentence, as :一
有 fT, Svat Smo? Are there any ? Lit. Have not-have ?
ADJECTIVE PRONOUNS. 8I
ADJECTIVE PRONOUNS OR ADJECTIVES.
Note 2.—The Classifier (care must be taken that it is an appropriate one) must
i CR
be used with 每 ， “mui, in most cases, the exceptions to the use of the Classifier
being when 每 ， Smit, is used before Nouns of Time and Place.
Either, 是 但 ， shiz tén?, or FE: (8 Ye 个 ， shi? tan2 pin* ko’, as 一 是 但
ye 个 都 好 ， shi tan? pin* ko’ oto” Sho, either will do.
Either, -—— or, 或 ， wak, -一 一 或 ， wak,, as 一 或 We ney, 或 Kf] ney
wak, cni ti*, wak, “ko ti*, either these, or those.
> fe} = a)
Neither Wy 个 都 号 (or 47) ‘long ko” to* ,um (or Smé :
; =) ; g nto” ¢ (or ~mo), as :一
两 售 都 Ay Ay {B: Song ko” ut” Smo “ta Sti, neither of them struck him.
两 位 都 At 做 ， 9ang wai* to Smo tso2， neither of them did it.
Any is understood, or it may be expressed by 只， ati*, @ little, some, as :一
个 ni HF af op FES EB, eo? “kwo ‘tsz kom? vai Sngo
cm shik, lok , that fruit is so bad I will not eat anv.
= = fa]
ta 上 有 8, 你 有 食 Wey AT EF, shi? shéng* Svat zch‘ang*, Snét
Ot oh BiG a 3 :
“yai shik, ti°“md 4°? There weve some ovanges on the tree, did you eat any ?
20
7 i pe)
fe ba R te A Fe MY (or B AP) AT WE, Toit shone’
Svaii gngan’, 和 nt Svat ning ti (or (to shia) Smo em? There was money on the
table, did you take any ?
Other, and Another are expressed by 第 aie taf? yi2, or Fi, Pit. Some of
the dictionaries are again in error, giving By 个 ， pit, ko’, as othey. Remarks
which have previously been made with regard to similar words apply with
equal force to Fy, pit,. It is used both with an appropriate Classifier, and
alone like We, oe
The other's yi} (Classifier here if used) OER, pit, (C.J ke’: others’, Bill 084 UPR,
it tit k >
pit, ti* ke
nA, ti*, is used to denote plurality with Fl, pit,, in the same manner as with
fe} =
He, oni Ls ke’. is used with 别 ， Pit, to shew possession, as represented
by the English, other's, or others’ Whena Classifier is used with it, nf, ke’,
is placed after the Classifier, as :—
Ki 个 OE, pit, ko’ ke’, the other's.
82 ADJECTIVE PRONOUNS.
ADJECTIVE PRONOUNS OR ADJECTIVES.
Each other may be expressed as follows, viz. :—
> A A, ¢ pee atte ye) :
‘ap 家 相 i, léng (kA (Song of ， they love each other.
fi wa HG A NE AW oN BR, BEN 8 i OE, So
J Cis > ao Guy € Ges 5 5 Gi 5)
tei? “léng ko ctsang wi’, hd >*t'sz “néi ctsang “ngo, “ngo _tsang néf kom ke ，
they hated one another (i.e., they two hated), as if you hated me and I hated you.
REFIECTIVES. :
CX. Self is expressed by A 已 ， tsz? ‘ké{, with the Personal Pronouns,
as i—
Myself, 我 自 已 ， Sngo tsz2 “Kel, (I myself).
Yourself, hy A 已 ， Snef tszz Ke， (you yourself).
Himself, herself or itself, {B 自 已 ， Ski tsz2 “kes, (he himself, she hersel7, or it
itself ).
Ourselves, 我 nh A 已 ,， Sngo ter tsz2 “Kes, (we ourselves).
Yourselves, 你 welt 自 已 ， Sn 人 te? 人 sz Setf， (you yourselves).
Themselves, 1B Hb 自 已 ,， Sait tet? tsz et， (they themselves).
Note 一 自 已 ,， tsz2 “Ker, is often used alone without the Personal Pronoun
when the sense is sufficiently clear without the Pronoun, as :一
% A 已 做 OE, hai tsz? “kes ts02 ke’, I did it myself.
(1A OEM. 6% BE OE RB, mae Son te
“Ker ts92 ke? “ma? Hai? tsz? “ket tsd* ke’ lok. Did he do it himself? Yes, he
did it himself.
A man’s own self, =o—me 个 人 自 已 ， yat, ko? cyan tsz” “her
Men's own selves, ov people themselves, 人 pa A cb, cyan te 也 tsz2 “kel,
CXI. Self is also often expressed by 本 身 ， ‘pin shan, (own body),
.
as :—
’
你 你 本 & 做 Ne, Hai? Snei “pin (Shan tso2 cme? Did you do it yourself ?
Myself, himself, etc., are formed in the same way with 本 &, “pin shan, as
5
天 局
with 自 已 ， tsz> “kéi, as given above.
REFLECTIVES AND VERBS. 83
REFLECTIVES,
CXII. Self would be used in English where the Chinese often make use
of the following and similar expressions, as :一
LAB, ({s'an Sngan ; #4 Ef, ts'an Syi; xa, cts'an “shat, etc ,as :一
你 #a 耳 Hee Bl WE, SN6i cts'an svi tengt kin? ~me? Did you hear it
yourself ? (i.e., with your own ears).
你 3 AR 见 便 BE, SNti cts'an Sngin kin? ‘koi cme? Did you see him
yourself ? (i.e., with your own eyes).
ee {% 你 #4 | 做 喇 if HE, Na’, hai? Snes cts'an .shan tso2 <
hai? cni? Now, did you do it yourself? (i.e., with your own body).
t%, 也 1 t F, 5 我 #4 手 做 Oey, 咯 ， Hai’, mat, cm hai” 4”?
Hai? cngo cts' an ‘shat tso? ke? lok,, Yes, why not? I did it myself, (i.e., with my
own hands).
Note.—That the A 已 ,， tsz2 “kef， self, ie., myself, yourself, etc., always
immediately follows the Personal Pronoun, and is not placed at the end of the
sentence as sometimes in English. He sold it himself, such a construction in Chinese
if literally followed might be thought to mean that the man sold himself—in fact,
it would be unintelligible. The proper construction in Chinese is, he himself sold tt,
as :一
伍 自 已 p=] OEE 咯 ， “k'Ou tsz2 “kéf mg ke? lok_, he himself sold it.
VERBS.
CXIII. The Active and Passive Voices are distinguished as follows :一
个 ii He + SEV) ko? omau* chuk, Sh “shii, the cut catches rats.
个 + 鼠 a 猫 HE 倒 咯 ， ko? “Io cshia PEE gman* chuk。 “te lok, the vat
is caught by the cut.
CXI1V. The Passive Voice is but seldom used in comparison with the
Active; therefore the learner must use it but sparingly, preferring the Active
Voice to it, and should generally turn all Verbs in the Passive Voice in
English into the Active in Chinese.
CXV. Other Verbs are sometimes used in combination with the principal
Verb in some cases when it is of importance to give prominence to the ideas
conveyed by the use of Moods and Tenses in English, subject to what follows.
84 VERBS.
VERBS.
CXVI. There are no special modes of expression that will serve to
differentiate the Infinitive, Indicative, or Imperative except the positions of
the words in the sentence, or the context, or obvious meaning, as :—
我 Ba, Sngo dai, 了 come.
3 =I kia’ -k‘ou ,lai, tell him to come.
时 BB, He? si
做 好 A, tso2 “hd cyan, be a good man.
做 好 人 你 算 ia 好 HE mH, ts0? “ho cyan Snéi siin? hai? “ho cnan kw’,
you probably think it is very hard to be agood man.
Ah py 部 = 我 ， “péi “ko po2 shi Sngo, give me that book.
CXVII. With regard to the Subjunctive, the Conjunction amd sense will
show that a Chinese Verb is to be rendered in English in the Subjunctive
Mood, as :一
{i 或 ne E, 我 就 见 1B, Sk 6a wak, Shai shir, Sngo tsad? kin’ “kai,
if he were here, I should see him, or if he is there, I shall see him, or if he had been
theve, I should have seen him.
CXVIII. The Conjunction is however often understood and the dependent
member of the sentence will then show that the Verb must be put into the
Subjunctive Mood in English, as:—
伍 做 ， 我 pz. 中 意 My, Sk 6ii tsd2, Sngo <m .chung ye lok, if he does it,
I shall not be pleased
Note.—The voice often rests on and after the Verb when in the Subjunctive.
The beginner will do no harm by always thus pausing on such a Verb, especially
when no Conjunction is expressed. It serves to call attention, and has a tendency
to bring the meaning out more clearly. In fact there are a number of little niceties
of this kind in Chinese, the use of which assist materially in elucidating the meaning,
where, according to our ideas, the want of Grammatical forms obscures the sense.
The student will probably notice when a Chinese has anything to say
about any matter, that he prefers to tell what we consider a very long narrative
instead of condensing what he says. Remember, before condemning him for being
an interminable gossip and long-winded, that if he begins, as he prefers to, at
the commencement and gives you the events as they occurred in their natural
sequence, then nearly all obscurity from the want of Tenses, etc., is done away
with, and, all the minutize being entered into at length, the whole matter, according
to his ideas, is made plain. The best plan is to let him go on his own way.
Cut him short in his narrative, and after several ineffectual protests on his part,
after great difficulty, and after the use of an enormous amount of tautology, quite
contrary to the spirit of the Chinese language, you may arrive finally at his story
in disjointed fragments, which you have to piece together as best you can, or, what
VERBS. 85
VERBS.
is more likely, he has been utterly unable to tell you what he wants, and you can
but guess at his meaning. We forget how easy it is in our own language with its
fulness of grammatical form, as compared with the Chinese, to express what we
have to say shortly.
CXIX. More reliance must, however, be placed on the obvious
meaning, if it is possible to have any certainty on that subject in such
cases, as Chinese sentences may often -be put either into the Indicative or
Subjunctive in English, as :一
1B ain 我 HS, 我 就 打 伍 ， “oii wa? Sngo tengt, Sngo tsat? ‘ta
5 2
“k‘Gi, he told me, and I struck him, or if he tells me, I will stvike him. In such a case
it is necessary to know whether any striking has taken place. If not, it would pro-
bably best convey the meaning to put the sentence in the Subjunctive. Very often
in a case of doubt simply asking :—Did you strike him ? 你 有 打 伍 AT ny,
SNéi Syat “ta “koi Smo a ? will solve the difficulty ; for the reply will be very likely
something like the bw ti. 伍 fi a5 我 il, 我 就 Ay {B ny,
Smo, § 6a hai? wa? Sngo echt, Sngo tsaa? ‘ta “k'di lok , no, if he tells me, then I will
fe}
strike him. This sentence is of course capable of being construed into other Tenses
in English.
Note.— 或 ， wak,, of course, would bring out the sense of the Subjunctive more
clearly ; but unfortunately in Chinese, as in many other languages, one must tale
the sentences as one finds them, and as the people speak them. If one should try
to speak Chinese according to English idioms, as many foreigners do more or less,
it would produce such a gibberish compared to Chinese, as pidgin English is
compared to correct English.
CXX. Certain combinations can be used to express the ideas conveyed
in English by the use of Participles, as :—
Imperfect, 我 EL 个 组 Hox 仔 打 23 46 5, go kin? ko” sai’ jman*
“tsai “14 “kan chek “kat, I saw the child beateng a dog.
fe}
The Perfect may be put into Chinese in some such manner as the following :一
{B 走 去 因 Ri 个 人 Wins 前 1B. “ai Stsaa how ean wai2 ko?
cyan hak pen ia， frightened by the man, he van away. Of course, this
= fo)
Chinese sentence may be translated in several different ways into English.
2 aed 5
Acting Perfect Participle, 已 经 AT (SH) 咯 ， *yi (king a4 Gehey lok , having
struck.
Active Perfect Participle of continued action, 已 RE 打 EX 咯 ， svi king Sa
“kan lok , having been striking.
Q
86 VERBS.
VERBS.
Passive Indefinite Participle, 已 经 pe 人 打 EX nE, Syi king PE cyan
“t4 “kan lok, being struck.
Passive Perfect Participle, 已 经 BY 人 ay (SH) 咯 ， Si king PE yan
“ta (Scho) lok, having been struck.
Note.--It is necessary to introduce the object or thing which has struck, or
which has performed the action.
Avoid, however, as much as possible the use of such complicated constructions:
change them to simpler ones such as, the man struck me and then-——.
GERUNDS.
CXXI. Such forms as, ‘I like reading,’ may be rendered in Cantonese
by such sentences, as :一
我 中 意 a Hy, Sngo chung yi? tuk, ‘ye, I like to read things.
1B 中 = Al = oe 所 6 Chung yi? tuk, sha, he ts fond of studying.
伍 想 得 好 名 EE, *k'6u ‘sing tak, “ho ming (Shing, he is desirous of being
distinguished.
我 已 经 成 a B 人 学， 所 以 见 瘤 ， Sngo svi king <Shengt chia
‘se tsz?, ‘sho Si kin? wa 人 2， after having been writing the whole morning, I am tived
(i.e., I have been, etc., therefore, etc.).
TENSE.
CXXII. The Verb by itself may represent an action as taking place in
the Present, Past, or Future time, as :一
I stvike you.
我 打 LR, Sngo “ta snét, I struck you.
I will stvike you.
CXXIII. Where the context, or sense, does not show the time during
which the action is performed, and where it is essential that such time
should be most clearly expressed, certain words, or Particles, or Adverbs
of time, are introduced into the Chinese sentence, and atone, in some measure,
for the want of inflexion, as follows :一
1. To show present time, or continued action BX ‘kan, or Adverbs
denoting present time, such as [ff] Ae, <yi .ka*, now, EH PRR, yin? shi, at the
present time, and similar phrases denoting present time are used, as :一
现 时 A, yin? shi Svat, there is (at present).
我 而 家 去 ， Sngo cyf LEE hai’, Tam going (now).
VERBS. 87
VERBS.
2. To show past time, or completed action, such words, or Particles, as,
多， wan， BE, nia, = <yan, BRE, “cho, be tia, 3, “td, 黎 ， dai, or
Adverbs, or Adverbial phrases of past time, are used with the Verb, such as
个 阵 时 ， ko? chan? shi, at that time, HE H : tsok, yat,, yesterday, etc., etc.,
as :—
+8 Be MS, “wan dai lok, I have looked for it.
pz 网 EE RE, cm kin? chit lok, if is lost.
al 过 ， tak, kwo?, I have read it.
tso2 hia,
做 IEE, sa hia wit is finished.
做 oe tso2 cyan, }
3. To show future time Adverbs, or Adverbial phrases of future time,
are added to the Verb to qualify it, and bring out into prominence the idea
of future time; for it is to be remembered that time—all time—is already
inherent, as it were, in the Chinese Verb; the object of these auxiliary words
is to bring out into view so plainly the particular phase of time meant, that
there shall be no mistake about it. BR 48, <yin hat?, He Ae ctsong loi,
etc., are such Adverbs of futurity, as :—
我 将 来 = Sngo cts5ng loi héii, 7 shall go (by and by).
oo ¢
我 BR ee 做 ， Sngo cyin hati? tsd2, I shall doit afterwards (i.e., after the present
time). 4
CXXIV. The mere changing in some cases of the tone of the Verb into
the Variant Tone is sufficient to show that the action is completed.
我 3a 你 AN, go WE Snéi chi, 我 an By, Sngo wA* lok,, I have
J tell you (or I said to you—). said it.
ae 成 fz We, ‘Kong <Shengt 成 HE, zSheng* lok.. it is settled.
cm cts'ang ni? Is the matter settled?
你 3 fp EI) WE, ‘Nei “kéf cshf (or + BA $a 到 [fii], shap, ‘tim ,chung
zshi*) to’ cn? When did vou arrive ? to]* 4, I arrived at ten o'clock.
2a ES 未 叮 ， Tuk, shi méi? a? ‘Sg iW, tuk,* lok, 了 have.
Ilave you read (your) book yet ? (or
learned your lesson ?)
Remark.—When the word is already in the Variant Tone, the emphasis,
which is sometimes thrown on it to mark the Past Tense prolongs the tone—in .
short, the voice rises, if it be a Rising Tone, during a longer space of time in
88 VERBS，
VERBS.
uttering the word, as for example in pe, “hia, to understand. That is to say it is
changed from the Upper, or First Rising Tone to the Variant of that Tone. And
this likewise would be the case with a word, which might happen to be in the
Lower Rising Tone, or in almost any of the other Tones.
NUMBER AND PERSON.
CXXV. There is no means of expressing the modifications of the
English Verb in Chinese in regard to Number and Person, etc., subject to
what follows, as :一
{Bi 爱 ， 和 6 oi, he (she, or it) loves, or they love.
CXXVI. If great clearness is to be expressed, as to Voice, Mood, or
Tense, etc., etc., in a Chinese Verb, it is possible, though not usual, to convey
the meaning in English into the Chinese sentence in the following, or some
similar manner, which, at the best, must, in many respects, strike one as a
lame expedient; for to convey with any distinctness the ideas shown with
such ease in many languages into Cantonese it is necessary, as stated above,
to employ different Adverbial phrases of time, and Particles.
CXXVII. The following paradigm will give the learner an idea how to
form combinations in Chinese to express time when it is absolutely necessary
that it should be expressed; but the Chinese eschew such particularity as
much as possible. The Examples given below, it must be remembered, are
but expedients, and must, necessarily, often be imperfect. Expedients can
only be used when no forms exist. No amount of expedients can free such a
language from a certain amount of ambiguity. At the same time it must be
remembered, that our own language is not altogether free from ambiguity—
in fact, no language is:—e.g., I found him out. And our own language is also
wanting in expressions, or terms, which in Chinese, and some other languages,
are simply expressed without the verbiage necessary, in such instances, in
English. For instance we have no word in English for the Chinese word
3K, sung’, but must paraphrase it as ‘something to eat with the rice’; the
Scotch, however, in this instance have an equivalent in the word ‘kitchen.’
Again our terminology for degrees of relationship is not so complete, nor so
clearly expressed as it is in Chinese, and some other languages. Nor have
we any terms in use for the day preceding the day (or night, or morning, or
evening) before yesterday, and the day (or night, or morning, or evening)
following the day after to-morrow, such as the Chinese have.
VERBS. 89
VERBS.
CXXVIII. FJ , ‘TA, TO SMITE, OR TO STRIKE.
-
ACTIVE VOICE.
INFINITIVE MOOD.
Indefinite Tense, [To] smite, 打 “ta.
Imperfect Tense, [To] be smiting, FJ 紧 ， “ta Skan.
Perfect Tense, [To] have smitten, 个 a 时 ay DRE ko? chan? shi “4 Scho.
Perfect of continued action, [To] have been smiting, 个 时 已, 经 AJ B,
ko” shi Si cking “ta “kan.
PARTICIPLES.
a Ca Gs
Imperfect, smiting, 打 罕 ， ta “kan.
Perfect, having smitten, B 和 经 打 TRH Syi king “ta ‘cho.
Perfect of continued action, having been smiting, Hl joie 时 已 KE 打 BR,
ko” chan? (shi cyf cing “44 “kan.
INDICATIVE MOOD.
8 5 Cg
Present Indefinite Tense, J, etc., smite, 我 ， etc., 打 ， “ngo, etc., ta.
en 如 c C5
Present Imperfect Tense, J, etc., am smiting, 我 ) etc.， AJ RR, “ngo,etc., ta kan.
¢ G6
Present Perfect, I, etc , have smitten, 我 ， etc., FT OH, “ngo, etc., ta cho.
nd
Present Perfect of continued action, J, etc., have been smiting, 我 ， etc., 就 t&
< Boy Pa be e s
4 gg, ngo, etc., tsai” hai" ta cai.
< 全。
Past Indefinite Tense, J, etc., smote, 我 ， etc., AJ nH -ngo, etc., t4 cho.
F 5 >
Past Imperfect, I, etc., was smiting, 我 ， etc., 个 时 打 Rx “ngo, etc ,ko shi
“t4 Skan.
Past Perfect, I, etc., had smitten, 我 ， etc., 个 时 就 {4% 打 nk <ngo, etc.» ‘ko
t, ¢
oar
shi tsaa> hal* °'4 ‘cho.
Past Perfect of continued action, J, etc., had been smiting, 我 ， etc., 1H [ae 时
已 KK 打 坚 ， Sngo, etc., ko” chan” Shi Syi king ha 人 ‘ta Skan.
a
90 VERBS.
VERBS.
Future Indefinite Tense, J, etc., shall smite, 我 ， etc., Ho aie qT, Sngo， etc., {song
doi “ta.
ee Imperfect Tense, I, etc., shall be smiting, 我 ， etc., 4 来 FJ Bx, iS
etc., hat dot “tA “kan.
Future Perfect Tense, J, etc., shall have been smiting, 将 来 咯 efi 时 到 ，
我 ， etc., 已 经 FJ ne 咯 ， ts6ng loi ko? chan” phi* to, go， etc.,
Syi cking “ta Scho lok,.
Future Perfect of continued action, JI, etc , shall have been smiting, 将 来 响 Psat
时 到 ， 我 ， etc., 已 经 {% 打 EX ctsang lof ko? chan? shi" to’,
<ngo, etc., Si king hai? “ta Skan.
IMPERATIVE MOOD.
Smite, qT, “ta
CXXIX. For the Subjunctive Mood use 或 ， wak,, or 车 ， yok,, or
these with {&, haf, or similar words before the Tenses of the Indicative
as given above, either immediately following the Pronouns, or use such
words without any Nominatives expressed at all, as :一
1B 或 ge, Sk di Wels cat, he may come
FE we, 你 1 i > =*ngo yok, dd ai, St < cshai hoi’, if I should come,
you need not go.
CXXX. The Impersonal form of the Verb, there ts, or there ave, is not used
in Chinese. Its equivalent is simply Ay, ‘yau, have, and 布 ， Smo， not have,
or none, nothing.
CXXXI. In the cases where in English the impersonal 他 is used, in
Chinese the Verb in some cases precedes the Noun, as :一
落 RH, lok, Syii, it rains.
落 = lok, siit,, if snows.
落 大 璀 ， lok, tai? Syii, it rains heavily.
CXXXII. In other cases the Chinese prefer to use the simple and more
natural form where the Noun is expressed, and the Verb follows it, as :- 一
风 PR, cfung .ch'di, the wind blows.
VERBS. 9I
VERBS.
CXXXIII. For the Passive Voice use ##, péi*, before the Verb in its
different Tenses, as given above, the person, or agent, being expressed, if in
no other way by the impersonal, 人 ， <yan, someone.
CXXXIV. Where emphasis is expressed in English by do, it may be
rendered in Chinese by &, shat,; or =a iE, chan ching’, etc., as :一
我 rem TE 爱 你 ， Sago chan ching? of? snét, I do (really) love you.
CXXXV. A number of auxiliary words, particles in some cases, Verbs
and other parts of speech in other cases, are used with Chinese Verbs at
certain times, and have the effect of rendering clearer the meaning of the
Verb, as regards the time of being and action. They also limit and define
the nature of the being, or action, expressed by the Verb (See Paradigm of
Verb); but, if rendered into English literally, these words have the contrary
effect to what they have in Chinese. Many of these words are given, and
the manner of their use exemplified elsewhere in this book.
CXXXVI. Interrogative sentences are formed in several ways.
1. By simply giving a rising intonation to the word, or last word in the
sentence, very much the same as in English, as:—
f&, Hai?*? Yes?
1B { BB, “Keil hai? zlai*? Has he come ?
Remark.—This last sentence would be better with the interrogative particle
RE, cme, at the end; but besides the interrogative the 1, zlai*, being in a
variant tone also expresses past time.
2. By the simple addition of an Interrogative Particle at the end of the
word, or sentence, either taking the place of the Affirmative Final Particle,
where such is used, or in some cases forming a suffix to it. Practice anda
careful attention to good speakers will teach the proper use of these, as :一
uk WE: Hai? <me? Yes?
{4 ee We, Haf lo? cme? Is it so?
3. A most common form is the Interrogative- Negative.
% fz. t%, Hat? cm hai2? Js it so, ov not? .
有 石 ， SYat Smad? Is there any, or not ?
4. It often happens that Nos. 2 and 3 are combined, as :一
4% WE 1% WE, Har? em hai? ni? Is it so, ov not ?
92 VERBS.
VERBS,
Note. 一 It will be seen that unlike the English the Subject of the Verb precedes
the Verb in the Interrogative sentence as well as in the Affirmative, and the Verb
therefore follows instead of preceding it as in English. There are no auxiliaries to
usher in an Interrogative sentence in Chinese. If there are any words to show
that it is Interrogative, they close the sentence, as :一
个 人 {&G A a ea 4 RE, Ko? cyan hai? (kam cenit oo lo? me? Oh!
Did the man come this morning ?
伍 B 食 也 Hy WE, Sk6i hat? shik, mat, Sye ni? What does he (or she,
or it) eat?
t% nt Z yp wee ee RF, Hai? kom? oto” cai lo? me? Were there so many as that
came ? or Was that the number that came ? lit., Twas so many came, eh ?
Exception.—What at first sight might appear an exception is to be found
in sentences, such as, {4 我 做 ee, Hai? Sngo tso2 cme? Did I do it? but it
will be seen that it is no exception to the affirmative form of this sentence, as,
2 5 ~2 4 oe
t& 我 做 MB, Hai" *ngo tsd" lok,, It was 7 who did it. The itis not represented
in Chinese, and so in sentences where it is used in English it is omitted in Chinese
and the subject to the first Verb has to be supplied when turning the Chinese
into English.
CXXXVII. In answering questions, the Chinese language is less ellip-
tical than the English, as in Chinese it is often necessary to repeat the words
employed in the Interrogative. The Chinese is more like French in this
respect, as it is not considered polite to simply say yes, or no, in reply to a
question, as :一
1B 有 Be Wy, Ki Svat clai pme? Did he come ?
伍 有 gE, SH Syaa clai, he has come.
«CXXXVIII. The Interrogative-Negative is largely used in otens ques-
tions, and in such cases it often happens that {&, hai?, or A, $ *yat, or
pz %, cm hai?, or AT, § =m, is repeated i in the answer, as well as the Verb
used in asking the question (in this respect again like French), as :一
{A % 出 街 ， {% fz. A BE, 和 Ki hai ch'ut, Jkai*, hai? cm hat? cni?
Has he gone out, oy not ?
{% a, & 出 街 we, hai lok,, hai ch‘ut, kai* lok, yes, he has gone out.
{BE fA 走 x, {8 nF % He, Sk‘6i haf ‘tsa how?* , haf2 cm hai? cn?
Has he run away or not ?
&, {8 % 走 去 咯 ， haf, Sk'di hai? “tsaa hoii?* lok,, yes, he has run away.
VERBS. 93
VERBS.
CXXXIX. When a pronoun is used in the question it is well to repeat
it in the answer, or use another, as the sense, or the person of the speaker
may require, as :一
任 伍 fz. A 上 : Hat? Sk‘dit cm hai? 4? Is it he, oy not ?
4 伍 My, or {& ny, & 1B %, hai? Soi lok, or hai? a haf? Koi
lok, it is he (like French again).
Remark.—Therefore when replying to a question, as a rule, take the question
that has been asked you, and simply put it in an Affirmative, or Negative form,
leaving out when it is an Interrogative-Negative question the Affirmative, or
Negative part of the question, as the case may require.
CXL. The Negative precedes the Verb, as :一
喇 a, cm chi, 了 do not know.
CXLI， If the Negative follows the Verb, it is interrogative, as :一
有 做 石 ， {Yat tsd2 Smad? Did you do it, or not ?
Note.—In this case 做 ， tsd2, is understood after the 右 ， Smo.
Exception.—The Negative fz, <m, follows the Verb when it is desired to
express simple negation in those cases where its preceding the Verb implies not
simple negation, but an unwillingness to perform any action or deed, as :一
我 做 fz. 得 ， Sngo tsd2 < tak,, I was not able to accomplish it, or simply,
I did not do it.
我 做 pz 1, Sngo tso2 gn cat, I could not do it, or I did not do it.
我 了 喇 做 ， Sogo mm tso2, I will not do it.
Note 1.—Of course 得 ， tak,, and ie, cai, are secondary Verbs in the
sentence.
Note 2.—Inability is expressed by pz 7, Swat, uot able.
CXLII. The Negative is placed before a single Verb, and after the
Nominative, if it is expressed, as :一
我 pz 爱 咯 ， Sngo- gm ot? lok ., I do not want it.
、2
pz 做 we, ga tsd' lok, (I) will not do it.
CXLIII. Where certain words are used as adjuncts to the Verbs,
whether they are Verbs themselves, or other parts of speech, the Negative
is either placed between the principal Verb and its auxiliary, or the Verb
and its adjunct, as the case may be, or the Negative immediately precedes
the two, as:—
94 VERBS.
VERBS.
RAL SL om ome |
我 喇 7 得 到 j， ‘ngo puss - tak, ta’, LI cannot reach up to it.
我 qa NH 78 Bl, ‘ngo 。o cm tak, to’, |
Note .一 See Note CXLI.
FE WE 做 得 ， 和 go .m tsd* tak,,
HR (He OB Soo 022 om a,
CXLIV. The Negative follows an Adverbial Phrase of time, as :—
现 时 4, yin? shi md, none at present.
而 家 右 ， ot ka Smo, none at present.
HE [sag 时 AY 咯 ， ci ch'an2 sh Smo lok,, none at this time.
Note 一 有 ， Syai, might be called an affirmative Verb and 47, md, the
opposite.
了 cannot do it.
CXLV. The simple Affirmative and Negative, yes and o, are generally
represented in Chinese by the words 有 cyad， there is, or the Verb to have,
or f&, haf, it is, and Al, Smd, there is not, or not to have, or fiz. &, cm hai’,
it is not respectively, as :—
有 Ay, yaa Smad? Is there any?
有 ， Syat, there is some.
B EN pz {&, Hat? ‘kom < hai2? It is so, or not?
fiz. t% we, em haf? ‘kom, if is not so,
Note.—It might be said, that the words 有 ， cyat， {4, hai,2 and Fi, §
pz. fA, o hai?, are so largely used in making statements, and asking questions
in Chinese, that in accordance with Remark under CXXXIX, they often come
into the reply in Chinese where in English a simple yes, or nv, would suffice. In
some cases they simply represent the English Verbs have, did, to be, etc., and the
Negative employed together with these Verbs.
= a 2 = .
CXLVI. The words {& Wy, hai -4, are often used with the meaning
only of well, very well, or as a simple sign that the statement that has been
made has been heard, without implying assent in any way whatever.
Note.—The most marked use, which the author has noticed of this t hai,
in this sense is in murder, or other criminal, cases, when in rebuttal of a statement
by an accusing witness, the prisoner will sometimes reply, {& ny ; 但 fZ 我
Ay 做 汉 i Hy, hai2 & tan? hai? Sngo Smd tsd? td? ai oh yes (or well) ;
VERBS. 95
VERBS.
but I did not do it. The idea szems to be this—Oh yes, I have heard what he
Says, or very well, that is his statement; but the fact remains that I did not do
anything of the kind at all. It must be noted what an important part the final plays
in this meaning.
Remark.—It must be remembered that the Verb is not always used in Chinese
where it would appear in English, upon the principle, probably, that what can be
understood from the sense need not be expressed in words, as :一
1B 7 fB O47 We FE BA AA Bl) A OBR, Shou yaa tso? Smd ani?
SNgo “tim chi to “kai 4? Did he do it or not? How do I know (whether) he
(did or not).
= ss $2: 和 2
CXLVII. {4 ay, hai* me, often represents the exclamations which
are so often used in English conversation, such as:—
伍 By at ea 黎 ME, Ski cfo-keP fan at lok ， hus partner has returned
4% WE, Har? me? Oh! Has he?
我 eS 自 在 ， Sngo < tsz2 tsoP， 了 am uniell.
这 pans
t RE, Hai cme? Oh! Are you:
Remark.—These exclamations generally imply astonishment, or disbelief.
CXLVIII. Nothing is AT Hy, Smo Sve, or Ay 4, By, ‘md mat,
Sye, as:—
Cie ae) ioe
AT 4, 事 FF, -mo mat, sz- a’, nothing is the matter
AT Hy 呀 Smd Sye 4°, nothing.
; J
CE < 3 rane ‘ ;
Note.—4y 也 ， =md mat,, though it means nothing is sometimes used in the
sense of nothing much, or nothing furticular. In some cases its use seems somewhat
similar to the use of nothing in English at times, as for instance, IWhat is the matter
with you? Oh! nothing, is sometimes said in reply, when there is really something
the matter, but it is either of so unimportant a character, or the speaker does not
care to make any fuss about it, so he says, nothing.
CNLIX. Noone is Ai 人 ， <m6 cyan, or Aj 3B 个 ， Smé pin® ko’, as:—
AT 人 2m, Sma cyan wa?, NO One SAYS SO.
A ee 个 Ne 做 ， Smo -pin* ko? ‘kom ts0, no one (or nobody) docs sa.
CL. Do not is expressed by ni, ‘maf, ze KF, cm “hd, as: 一
pk 做 ， Smai tso2，or pz. 好 做 ， cm “ho tsd2, Do not do it
rK és, Smai tai, Do not touch it. ;
Ny nH 多 x, Smai kim? (to sz2， Do not be so troubicsome.
96 VERBS.
VERBS.
Remark.—There is a distinction between the two, but it is often lost sight of,
and they are used interchangeably. [A, Smaf, means do not; a simple pro-
hibition, while [Iz 6 ini titi
i = WE HF, a ‘hd, has some sense in it of that it is not well to do so,
and therefore means originally that it is not well to do it, as 我 £5) 你 ， pz 好 做 ，
Sngo hiin? £néi, m Sho tso2, I advise you not to do it.
CLI. Verbs are often left out in Chinese Sentences.
1. The Verb is often understood in a Chinese sentence when it would
be expressed in English, as:—
Iii 包 He, Min2- opaa* (sin, the bread is sour.
2. The Verb is often understood in sentences composed of a subject
and some quality predicated concerning it. In such case the copula is
understood, as :一
个 船 长 ， ko shin cch'6ng, the ship is long.
个 人 高 大 ， ko? cyan (ko t4i2, the man is tall.
3. In sentences expressive of admiration, surprise, or wonder, or in
sentences beginning with Interjections the Verb is often understood, as :一
pe 4,, nH ap a, Ai va, kom? ka’ shai?! Dear me, how handsome !
UR: 也 你 只 ¥, TS'oil mat, Snéf kom? (shoii? Tush! why ave you so stupid ?
te, WK LEG Dy: Hai, Smai ‘kom (as Look herve! do not do so.
rem TE 好 wal, (Chan ching’ ‘hd 14, it is really good.
Remark.—The second sentence is only used by women.
CLII. The Subject always precedes the Verb: that of which something
is predicated, that which is predicated of it.
Exception.—Sometimes in questions the Personal Pronoun follows the Verb,
as :一
fA 我 Ba RE, Hai? Sngo cai -me? Was it I who came ?
Note.—It will be seen though that this can scarcely be called an exception,
and does not invalidate the rule, as it, if translated according to its meaning and
literally according to the construction, would resolve itself (or it might be rendered
into) the following English :—It was I came, eh?
CLIII， When two Verbs are used the object is placed between the
two, as in English, as :一
(ei 我 +, “péi Sngo hoi, let me go.
CLIV. No Preposition is required before the Verb in the Infinitive in
Chinese. Position and sense show that it is to be rendered by an Infinitive
in English, as :一
VERBS. 97
VERBS.
{B an 1B 想 打 我 ， Sidi wa? {k‘da Sséng “td Sngo, he said, he wished to strike me.
CLV. In a sentence the Indirect Object follows the Direct when it is
governed by 过 kwo, which may be rendered in English by to, the sign of
the Dative, as :一
gt 个 Fh ES 过 我 ， “péi ko” po? shi kwo” Sngo, give that book to me.
But it may either precede or follow when 3} kwo’ is not used, though
it is better to follow, as :一
介 部 = {Bi “pet pa shit koa, give him a ‘ook.
个 部 ES 但 过 1B, ko? po? chi “és kwo? Ski: but the former way is ixtter.
CLVI. In quoting what one has said the forms ‘said he” ‘‘said she,”
etc., are never used in Chinese, the Subject always precedes the Verb, as:—
{EB an Sear wa?, he said.
Note.—The use of the Final nF, woz is more akin to the ‘he said’ of the
English, as :一
{B af FJ 我 ifn, Soa wa? ‘ta Sngo wo? (or wo’), he said he would strike me.
CLVII. That Chinese Verbs are as idiomatic in their use as English
or French or other Verbs the following list of words or phrases in which
FJ ; “ta, to strike, occur, will show. This list is not exhaustive, as so common
and so varied is the use of this word that new forms are constantly appearing.
1. It is used in the simple form 47, “ta, with the meaning of to strike,
to beat, to hit, and is the common rallying cry in faction fights, street
quarrels, etc., as :一
打 4K, “ta “fo, to strike a light.
4T 1B, “44 Ska, beat him.
vive
Note.—It is to be noted that a Chinese often says 1B qT 我 ， Skea “ta Sngo,
and the same of similar acts of assault, when upon further investigation it is found
that though an assault may have been committed in a strictly legal sense of the
term that actually no blow has fallen upon the person of the speaker. Care must
therefore be taken not to render such phrases literally until it be found whether
there was a threatened assault, or an actual one.
2. As striking takes a prominent part in war, etc., it is used in the
following combinations :一
AT Fe 44 kAa*, to fight (in a quarrel).
入， o
98 VERBS.
VERBS.
aT x, “ta chong’, to fight (in battle).
aT 局 ，
4J 办 5 sha, to be defeated. In the past tense, “ta Shi
a Yengt, 40 conquer ; to win. In the past tense zyeng 十.
4T FA, “ta iat to get off; to rescue. (It necessarily implies to get off by the use
of blows).
3. With the idea of striking it is used in combination with the article
which is habitually struck to indicate the name of the striker, that is, the
man who earns his livelihood by continually striking such an object, as :一
打 4G HG, “aet np olacrsmitn.
47 Sia] 供 ， “ta tung “1a, coppersmith.
aT 鼓 IER. “ta Skwa ke’, drummer,
47 Ay B “ta shek? Qa, stone-cutter.
4. It is used in the names of actions in which striking is habitually
used, as above, as :一
47 IK wh, “4 fii sha, to chunam.
47 IK 路 “ta fai 102, or le", to caulk.
[3 8) 5
5. It has the meaning of “…by” when used with a Noun representing
the way by which, or on which, the progression takes place, and after
the word to go or come as :一
ay 路 +, “ta 102 hit’, to go by road, or by land.
ST AK BE De, “4 ‘shou 10? now’, 10 go by water.
打 山 去 ,打出 路 去 4 sh noi, o “ta shan 13? how, to g0
by way of the hills, or to go by a mountain road.
。 ny Os Gaye : rere) wg
41 窗 出 去 ， ta och 6ng* ch ut, hoi’, to gu out by the window.
AT 般 去 ， “ta (shin héii’, to go by ship.
oJ IRE 二， “ta Streng hoi’, to go by boat.
Ay yi 去 ; “ta he hoii’, fo go by carriage, or any wheeled vehicle.
6. It is used to express certain actions of the elements, as :-—
aT 雷 We), “ta (oii Shéng, the sound of thunder.
ay Jal, “4 fung, to blow.
aT 大 Jal “ta tar? fung, or “ta fung kat?» to blow a strong wind.
打 大 wh 人 BB, “14 tai? Syii yap, ,lai, the heavy vain is driving in.
个 ney aK 47 过 ig, ko 。 tit “shou ‘ta kwo? fat, the water beat over.
VERBS. 99
VERBS.
雷 打 %E, (loa “ta ‘sz, to be hilled by a thunderbolt.
7. It is used in combination, or in words to represent sudden and violent
actions, as :一
T 4 Hey, “4 shek, p'da’, to Dlast.
AT 育 ， “ta cmang, to be struck blind (i.e. to become blind from the effect of a
blow, or lightning). In past tense (mang*.
a] wk, “ta _Pai, to become lame from the effect of a blow.
4T BR, ta tit,, to be struck down,
BR 47 qj 伤 ， tit, “ta, to (shong, accident. (See next sentence).
BR aT AL tit, “+4 yin", accident pilis (i.e. to cure the effects of accidents).
qa 落 Ik, “tA lok, “shai, to be thrown down into the water.
打 落 Hh, “ta lok, téi2, to be thrown down on to the ground.
47 A, “4 “sz, to be killed (primarily by a blow, or in battle).
Note —#y 4E , “ta “sz, necessary implies that the death has resulted from a
blow of some sort, or from a shot
8. It is used to express a number of other actions, as :一
ay +, “td sd’, to sweep.
47 Ik, “ta Sshaii, to draw water.
打 $y; “ta tens to make nails.
te CS epee So Di : :
47 化 if, ta an min=*, to paint for acting.
“ta tstin™ tstad*, to slue right round.
i
v? fe) 口
aT 落 ， “ta lok,, to knock down.
» es 7 本
47 VK: ta ech am, to be sunk; to sink.
47 PR, “t4 t'Am’, to pay a visit of inspection, ov surprise.
5
4J 赤 ih ta ch'ek, flak, to be naked.
47 发 人 去 “ta ft cyan haiiz to send any one away uny where (as ona message).
是 fe)
ay ia a “ta “sz Mt, to tie a dead knot.
aT 包 ， “ta spate to do up in matting (as a bale of goods).
打 理 ， wr 16s, to attend to anything.
47 管 府 ， “ta ue “fa, to go up to Court ; to go to law.
47 E BE, “ta fa tat. to cheat by secretly taking a percentage in buying anything
for an employer.
IOO VERBS.
VERBS,
g. It means to buy in the phrases:—
ay re “ta “mai, to buy vice.
ay tk 食 “ta “fo shik,. to buy 0
to. Itis used to express a profession, or occupation, implying, of course,
action of some sort, as:—
Sy 06 223 5.2% | an inmate of a brothel (in Hongkong); -
47 1K aU, ta “fo Meh" or ke 1 be partner with.
a Rte, “ta tsdp)*, a general assistant in a shop, or « coal trimmer on a steamer.
47 本 ， (0/34) “ta “pain (ke ), a@ capitalist, anyone who provides money for any under-
taking, ov work by some one else.
11. It has the sense of 如 play in the following combinations, as :一
47 7 牌 ， 和 kwat, zPai*, to play at dominoes.
AT 牌 “td “chi 2p'di*, to play at cards.
7 ?
12. It is used for the action of fire-arms, as :一
BA $B a7 1B, hoi ts‘éng* “ta Ki, shoot him.
E256
去 AT 4; hai? “ta tsdk,*, to go shooting (birds).
13. It implies addition, as:—
五 1a 47 七 个 ， Sng ko? ‘ta ts‘at, ko?, five added to seven.
CLVIII. Some idiomatic uses of 47, chang}, to walk.
1. It represents bodily, or physical motion, as:—
行 fr, Shangt cshiin, (if-used in a sentence), to go a voyage.
行 街 ， Shangt okai*, is used in the sens2 of taking a walk, or to go out.
1B Wht B47 HG EF BR, Swi esas? cn? zhdng*} ch'ut, -kéi* che, he has
only just gone out,
Be 行 街 Ri, claf -hangt LE (14, come have a walk,
2. It is also used in combination with the name of the object in
connection with which certain men take that physical motion whichis necessary
for them to undergo to perform their daily toil, as:—
行 fy OBR, changt <shin* ke’, a sailor, or to be employed on board ship.
47 街 OBR, changt kar ke’, a man who attends to the outside business of the shop, ov firm,
3. It represents actions, or conduct in the phrases—
行 刑 ， changt cying, to punish.
行 篇 ， changt cwai conduct.
VERBS. Iol
VERBS.
4F ile, chang+ “tai, to perform a ceremony.
47 清 ， changt ots'ing™, to worship at the tombs.
CLIX. On the uses of 起 ， “héf which means to vise ; to stand up.
1. It means in some combinations “‘to raise,” as:—
Hh #, cch 6 Het to raise.
起 &, Shef shan, to get up (lit. to raise the body).
2. In combination with some words it means to start, to begin, as :一
起 首 ， Shei ‘shat, to begin.
起 脚 ( 行 )， Shei aes (hangt), to start on a journey.
3. Used with UB, ,t‘ati it means beginning, as :一
起 HB, Shéi ztiai*, beginning.
4. Used with fi , tsd* it means to build in a generic sense and is used
with respect to the building of any edifice, as :—
起 fic, Shes t80?, to duita.
Note 一 起 做 aE, “héf tso2 ke’, is a builder, and 接 Fy 起 做 nfs
tsip, _p‘an* “héi tsd ke’, is a builder and contractor. The natural order of the two
5
callings is preserved in this sentence. We say a builder and contractor; but in so
saying we reverse the order of things, as a man must first take a contract before he
can begin to build, unless it be argued that the man first followed the business of
a builder, and then added on to it that of a contractor. Note also here that
起 Ee, Shei nk， and 起 aa, Shef pio’. are also used with regard to building
houses: the first is used about houses, and the second about shops. These two
must not be confused. In Cantonese Colloquial houses and shops are kept quite
distinct. A building, the lower story of which is used as a shop or mercantile
office (for there are no distinctions between the two except when the latter is a large
concern and then it may be called a 47; hong), is called a ait, p's, and not
an EB, Hs which is a house in which there is no shop.
5. Used after the Verb 做 ， tso> it means completed, as :一
做 ra (1), tso2 Shés (¢ lai), it is done.
CLX. Ba, hoi, has a number of different meanings.
1. It means simply and commonly “to open,” as :一
开 Hy, gue Sye, to open anything.
BA ibe, hoi chaug， to open a- new shop.
IO2 VERBS.
VERBS.
2. It is used with other words to represent the commencement of many
actions and deeds, as:—
BA &, cot shan, to start (on a voyage).
BH 价 ， shes ka, the first stated price, i.e the price at the beginning of a bargain,
lit. the opening price.
3. It has to be rendered into English sometimes by “off” or “out,”
etc., as:—
BA fr, pot shin, to go off to a vessel.
BA #, hot hoi’, to go off (to anything).
一 P 5 qd
(47) | we, (hangt) hot at, come nearer (to the speaker).
Note.— BH DA, Ps cai, means, outside, off there, etc.
CLXI. 上 ， SShong,， does not only mean to “go up.”
1. It also means to enter in a book, as :一
上 得 ， cshong po*, to enter in a book,
上 By. Sshéng sho’, to entey accounts. |
Remark.—Compare our phrase to enter up accounts and other similar
expressions.
2. It has the sense in the Chinese of going up, in the following phrases ;
‘but the genius of our language requires it to be otherwise rendered in
English, as :一
上 Ae, ‘shang cShiin, fo go on board a vessel, i.e., to go up on to a vessel.
_ e i
上 ., Sshéng hok,, to go to school, to begin to study, ie to go up to study.
上 FR, Sshong ngdn?,
上 街 ， Sshang kai*,
Remark.—The difference between these two is that there must be a street, or
streets when the latter is used, i.e., in one the person or persons must go up on toa
street, or streets, and not simply up on to the land; and a street, or streets necessarily
implies a hamlet, village, town, or city.
3. The Chinese habitually say when speaking about going to the capital
of the Empire, or the capital of a province ‘to go up’ just as we say, ‘to go
up to London,’ etc., as :一
上 OK, Sshing zSheng*t, (or csheng+ ) to go up to the ctty, Canton.
上 京 ， Sshéng oking*, to go up to the capital (of the Empire, Peking).
to go ashore.
CLXII. On some uses of the word 荡 ， lok,.
VERBS. 103
VERBS.
1. It is used in the sense of descending, falling, etc., as :—
Sia BE, lok, (lai, come down, i.e. descending come.
Note.—It must often be rendered in English by down, as above, as :一
BR 落 ， tit, lok,, to fall down.
2. It is used in the sense of putting down, as :一
落 本 ($8), lok, “pan (,ts'in), to advance, or pay in, or pay up, capital, ie., to
put down capital into any business or concern.
es
3. It is often used where in English an impersonal form of expression
would be used, as :一
落 雪 lok, siit_, it snows.
. 》 a fo}
落 WS, lok, Syii, it rams.
4. It must be translated in some instances by ‘ begin,’ as :—
% 手 ， lok, “shat, to begin (any manual labour), i.e., to put to the hand.
ye a lok, pat,, fo begin writing, to commence writing a book, etc.
5. In one, or two phrases it must be rendered, 如 go on board, as :一
落 船 lok，cshiin, 如 go on board a vessel.
? =e
6. Again it must be sometimes rendered by put in’ or ‘mix,’ as:—
落 vb, lok, osha, to mix sand (with anything).
CLXIII1. It will be found that there is quite an idiomatic use of
BE, dal, and &, hoi’, in some sentences.
1. When going or coming are spoken of, they are used with reference
to the position of the speaker, and are equivalent to ‘come’ and ‘go,’ as :一
Be me, Sshong lai, come up.
UE se, Sshong hoi’, go up.
落 gg, lok, lai, come down.
落 x, lok, hoi”, go down
2. But it is to be remembered that Be, (lai, when following Verbs is
often used to denote that the action to which the preceding Verb refers has
been accomplished, as :一
{B 做 ee 咯 ， koi ts62 cai lok, he has done it.
104 VERBS.
VERBS.
3. In answer to a call ee ng, lai lok , means, (I am) coming. RB, lai,
to come when used in phrases the equivalent of the English, come in, come out,
come back again, come up, follows the word, which show whether the action is
one of exit, or entrance, of ascent, or descent. In other comlinations the
word which takes the place of, or represents the Preposition in English
precedes the Verb Be, lat, to come, etc., as :一
ie, yap, clai, come in (lit. in come, or entering come).
出 we, ch'ut, claf come out (lit. out come).
上 Ie, Sshéng claf, come up (lit. up come).
落 Be, lok, cai, come down (lit. down come).
Note. —The same holds good as to 去 ， hoi’, fo go.
CLXIV. Idiomatic uses of 4f, Sts‘ot, to sit, to sit down.
1. It is in common use in the sense of visiting; paying a visit; going
to see anyone, as :一
Coe F plies ;
(有 ) 得 48 ial BR ARs, (ya) tak, ,han claf *ts ot, when you have time come, and
see us, (lit. come sit).
i Wee JU 1B We? fe He HA MS AB ae Bi 4
shi shi kin? koi ~me? Hai?, Sngo yat, yat, uto* yap, hair? Sts‘ot ke2, Did you
constantly see him? Yes, I went in every day to visit (lit. to sit).
2. It is often used with the sense of to vide, or where we would use a
Preposition with the verb, such as, ‘ in,’ or ‘by,’ or ‘on,’ or where the sense
would be plain enough in English without the use of any Preposition.
4 & i, Stsot Sma cchie, to ride in a carriage,
se ee
坐 船 去 ， Sts‘ot Shiin héi’, to go by vessel,
Ststot St! |
Ay ME ne, ts'of “t'engt laf, to come by boat.
Als is, Stsot kit", to ride in a sedan chair.
cit ve “tsai aetna tak
As 车 fF. =ts'ot che tsai, lo vide in a jinvickshaw.
Note.—To ride on animals is more commonly and better expressed by
‘ ‘ ities S : a ‘ ins
ey, kk'e， as: — Ey B&B, ck'e "m4, to ride on a horseback, Bey Ei ck e lo", to
vide on a mule. It is not wrong however to use 华 Sts'of， as :一
?
ee ee
As &, ts‘ot “ma, to vide on horseback.
As bi 3 Er, Stsof lok,-,t'o, to vide a camel.
VERBS. 105
VERBS.
3. It is also used where in English the Verb ‘to be’ and the Preposition
‘in’ would be used, as :一
Als BE, Sts'o kam™, to be in gaol.
PP) Gas ‘ ; ib ist.
大 人 坐 党 咯 ， Tai> van *ts'o <t'ong lok. His Lordship is in Court.
CLXV. Notice that with the word 4, ‘sz, to die (whether by natural,
or unnatural means) the means, or method, or cause by, or from which, the
person has died, or been killed is, more especially in the latter case, mentioned
in Chinese, as :—
bi] a, peng?t ‘sz, to die from disease.
BX EE; ‘ching ‘sz, to put to death (used in a general sense).
FT %E; “t4 Ssz, to hill, to slay.
Note.—This is also used in a general sense to a certain extent, that is to say
when speaking of death in battle, or by the hands, or by the elements; but not
when applied to death by drowning, falling, etc.,etc. Therefore it will be seen that
thoughadictionary may put, as some standard ones do put, under the heading ‘ tokill’
~ < -* 2, Cae ok F
RX, shat, Rx 4, shat, SZ, 加 EE ching ‘sz, it must be understood that
they cannot be used indiscriminately, but have different shades of meaning.
BR HE, tit, “sz, to be Rilled by a fall.
fz 4; pronounced cham2 “sz, to drown ; to be drowned.
Remark.—Compare English present illiterate phrase, drownded dead.
= HE, hoi2 ‘sz, to put to death by foul means.
Hil] KE, kat, “sz, to stab to death, or to kill by stabbing.
iy a; “cham ‘sz, to execute, to stab, so as to cause death.
局 4, kuk, “sz, to put to death by suffocation.
Bi AE; hak | “sz, to frighten to death.
Note.—This last is used in the same exaggerated way that the similar phrase
is used in English, as :一
{B Bia 4 我 ， ii hak, “sz Sngo, he frightened me to death.
CLXVI. The Chinese are very fond of euphemisms to soften the idea
of death, so repugnant to many ears, as:—
I 一 过 &®, kwo” shan.
Note 1.—The Buddhist idea of metempsychosis may be here referred to. In
that case it would mean ‘o pass into another bod.
2— tit kwo? shai’, fo pass into another life, or world.
’
106 VERBS.
VERBS.
ae 人
3 — fe. 在 ， cm tsof 和 ， not present, not here.
Remark.—Compare the Hebrew he was not with this last phrase.
Note 2.—An emperor's death is spoken of as Bi, pang.
CLXVII. The Chinese generally use, like the French, the Verb to have
有 ， ‘yaa, when stating the size or weight of any object, or the age of any
person, or thing, followed by the words 高 ， kd, high, 长 ， <ch‘éng, long,
ae, sham, deep, Kal, ft ， broad, 重 ， <ch‘ung, heavy, 年 ， chin, years, etc.,
etc., etc., as the case may be, as :一
有 到 高 ， Svat “kel ko*? How high is it ?
1B A 4E Ay AB Hy, ‘Kids kam qnin Syaii “kei ta"? How old is he ?
Note 1.—All the above and similar sentences may be as well, and sometimes
better rendered, by putting the 有 ， cyat, at the beginning of the sentence, as :一
Co RIG Se Ges. ay ee
有 3% 高 We, Yan “kéi KO ni? How high is it :
Note 2 一 The 有 ， cyat， may also be omitted, as :一
> = Ghee quae ) 5 ad : ,
1B 高 过 我 三 寸 ， k‘6ii .kO* kwo -ngo sam ts'in ，je is three inches taller
than I.
Note 3.—It will be seen that articles possess weight, etc., in China instead of
being simply so heavy, as with us.
CLXVIII. 有 j ‘yaa, is also used in place of the English Verb, 如 be,
when speaking of the hour, as :一
有 #6 Bk a 呢 ， S¥aa “kef Stim achung* ni? What time is it ?
CLXIX. Hi, ch‘ut,, to go out, and 47, hangt, to walk, used with
街 KE street, had better, as a rule, not be rendered literally, as :一
?
出 街 ， ch'ut， okai*, simply means owt, and is similar to the French en ville, as:—
% Sk‘Oii ch'ut, kAi*, he has gone out.
ceo do 8
47 街 ， changt kat, to take a wulk (lit. to go out into the street), as :一
= A? Sam* ni? Where is A Sam?
亚 三 呢 ,^ Sam",
< Cie utes : . 4 ry
AEE WAS WE 47 HH AF ms S88 nginrastnr dgt era RA
has just gone out. :
Note.—To bring the idea of being om the street into prominence, it is
necessary make use of some other words, as :一
个 所 多 tf ye BE: Ko? hat, vyi* Shai pin* shi? ? Where is the beggar ?
VERBS. 107
VERBS.
伍 KA 街 上 ， < 和 eof Shai kat ating? he is on the street. This last being more
like the French 4 Za ville.
Note.—This last #5, kai, is not put in the Variant Tone.
CLXX. The term for 如 mavvy when applied to a man is different to
that used when a woman is spoken about, as :一
1. To take a wife, or marry a wife, is a, ts‘oi’, or WK, “ts‘Ou.
2. The girls also of a family are said to have 出 FA, ch‘ut, man, when
they marry, i.e., to go out of the door.
3. To marry a husband is RK, ka’.
Caution.—These terms must not be used the one for the other.
4. Other terms are also used, as, IX ay FG, “tsi sam “p‘d, generally
pronounced ‘t‘sd san Sp‘d, to take a daughter-in-law, i.e., to get one’s son
married.
CLXXI. There are distinctions to be observed in the use of Ht, “taf,
to be worth.
1. In speaking of articles, say, 值 (得 )， chik, (tak,), or HE (FR) “tat
(tak,).
2. But HK, ‘tai, cannot be used in speaking of individuals. A phrase
that may be used in such a case is, [Bt 有 K HU &. “koa Syaa tai “pa
ztsin®, he has a lot of money (lit. a great handful).
: Ry ZB
Exception 一 你 伸 五 个 银 链 过 我 ,我 检 得 五 个 银 链 ，
Sntkf Spéi Sng ko” ngan zts‘in* kwo’ ‘ngo; Sngo “taf tak, Sng ko’ cngan .ts‘in ;*
You give me five dollars; I am worth five dollars (to you).
Note ae 把 ， tai? “pA, may algo be rendered by much, a great deal.
Note 2.—There are also other uses of HE, “taf, such for instance as in
Opie Coe ; 4 Got :
抵 手 ， tai “shai, clever, and in fz. HE. 得 ， cm ‘tai tak,, I cannot bear it, or
I cannot stand it.
CLXXII. Difference between ak, shik,, and 知 ， chi.
Tis chi, means ‘to know a fact; to be aware of; to be sensible of.’
1 ¢
fis AR We WAG SE HEE BE Fay BF, {Nev chi oni tit so? kon? em chi* @?
Do you know about these matters ?
Ue AB 4% WK WS 4% OF, SNéi (chi hai? ‘kom cm ha 4°? Do you
know whether it is so, oy not ?
你 A 伍 有 ge 右 EF, SNéf chi Soa Syaa claf Smd 4’? Do you know
whether he came, or not ?
IO8 VERBS.
VERBS.
gcse’ cya wee Gig @o ye z
Lh 知 ye 个 FT 4 名 iz 知 呀 , “Néi ,chi .pin* ko °t4 *néi cm chi*
4? Do you know who struck you? é
a, Shik,, means, or implies, mental knowledge, science, acquaintance,
and may generally be expressed by ‘to understand; to know how to do any-
thing’ (i.e., to be able); ‘to be acquainted with.’
我 fae oe Sngo shik, tsz2, I can read, and write.
我 ak 1B, Sngo shik, {k'du, I know him (i.e., am acquainted with, not merely
know him by having simply seen him once, or twice).
Note.—To know anyone from having seen him, as, for example, a thief from
having seen him in your house, would be 见 Poe kin? kwo?
CLXXIII. B, Smai, to buy, B, maf, to sell. The difference between
the two words consists in the tones. B, ‘mai, to buy, is in the lower rising
tone, or 下 上 ， ha? shéng?. B, maf, fo sell, is in the lower entering, or
下 A ha? yap,. Either 出 ， Ch‘ut,, or 4%, “péi, is often used with 8,
ma’, to sell, and A, yap,, to enter, is also often used with BA ‘mai.
Remark .一 It will be well for the beginner to get into the habit of using these
words at first with Fs ‘mai, and 8, mai2, and thus cover any mistake he may
make about the tone of the word, or at all events to fall back on them, if he is in
any difficulty in making himself understood. He may also employ them in asking
a question, if he is not sure that he has understood what has been said, as :一
4% BH AA, bat mar? chut, lok,, it was sold.
我 FQ 健 A, Sago mai? “pei Skeoti, 1 sold it to him.
1% A 入 opp, hae Smai yap, ke,, it was bought.
th & a A 和 信保 唔 傈 是 SNei haf wa? ‘mai yap, hai em hai® 4 A>?
Did you say bought, ov not ?
Note.—It is even more important than appears at first sight, because both
these words go into variant tones to express past time, and the variant tone of B
mai, to sell, is also a rising tone: so that to the untrained ear in tones it sounds
very like the original tone of BR mai, to buy.
3
ADVERBS.
CLXXIV. Adverbs are compared in the same manner as Adjectives.
Note.—In fact many Chinese Adjectives and Adverbs are one andthesame. The
distinctions of parts of speech are not marked with the clearness that exists to a great
ADVERBS. 109
ADVERBS.
extent in English. Chinese parts of speech are more like some few English words
that may be classed under different parts of speech according to the use they are
put to, as:—
快 BB, far Sma, a quack horse.
Be nay Be, fair gn lat, come quickly.
伍 ee 得 PR, Serer dai tak, fat, he has come quickly.
ADVERBS OF TIME.
CLXXV. Adverbs and Adverbial Phrases of Time sometimes either
precede, or follow the Verb, or often commence a sentence, instead of ending
it as in English, as:—
Ha H BE, ting yat,
而 家 去 ， oi a hoi’, go now,
nm “ko chan? shi wa lok’, (he) called out at that time.
’ ¢
A H 好 sie kam yat, ho 让 in, itis good weather to-day.
Note 1 — Bee 日 ; (fing yat,, to-morrow, must not always be taken ina literal
lai, come to-morrow.
vin
sense, it often means simply some indefinite time in the future, as:—
ya H Be 见 我 pa), ting yat, cai kin? Sngo 4, come see me again.
Note 2.—The to which appears in the English construction of to-day, to-night, is
represented in Chinese by A, kam, this, or the present, as a H ; ckam yat,, to-day,
and 4 BM, kam Smén, to-night.
Remark.—In colloquial the y of 日 yat,, after 4, ckam, is changed into m.
Note 3.—Note the difference which may exist in meaning due to the Adverbial
Phrase of time occupying a different position in a sentence, as :一
Kel 时 {A 人 gg, “ko shi ko? cyan cai, the man came at that time.
个 人 ey nt) FRR, ko” cyan clai “ko shi, the time that the man came.
我 组 鸣 个 I 时 ， ‘Ngo sai “ko ko’ chan? shi, when, or at the time [
was young.
ny ko” chan? shi Sngo saf ko’, at that time I was small.
ait 个 ，
CLXXVI. When the Nominative of the Verb is expressed whether it be
a Noun or Pronoun, it, with its qualifying words, in many cases either precedes
the Adverb, or Adverbial Phrase of Time, or not, as:—
我 a Ye Be MS, ov 4 SK 我 ge wy, Sngo kam Sman <lai lok, or
‘kam ‘man Sngo clai lok, J shall come to-night.
IIo ADVERBS.
ADVERBS.
CLXXVII. The Adverb, or Adverbial Phrase, it will be sometimes
noticed, follows both Subject Nominative and Verb, as in English, as :一
局 Cc
我 Be Mw, 今 HK, Sogo cai lok, ckam “man, I shall come to-night.
Note.—But it is added more as an after-thought in such a case. The best form
for the Beginner to get into the habit of using will be the one in which it
immediately follows the Subject of the sentence, as this latter form is not good
Cantonese and not heard in Canton. It is stated to be due to the influence of the
English structure of sentences on the minds of Chinese in Hongkong learning
this foreign language when young.
CLXXVIII. In some cases the Adverb, or Adverbial Phrase must occupy
a certain place in the phrase, or sentence, and no elasticity is allowed, as to
its position, as:—
th,
我 YU ge wy, Sngo tsa? claf lok, J am just coming.
ADVERBS OF PLACE.
CLXXIX. Adverbs of Place, or Chinese words which may be translated
in English by Adverbs of Place, when used with simple Verbs follow the Verb
as in English, as:—
fais WE iB, chai cni shi’, pluce it here.
x 去 咽 处， pan hai2 ‘ko sia move it there.
ee we EB, cai cai shir’, come herve.
CLXXX. When there is an Object in the sentence Adverbs of Place often
precede the Verb, or when the Verb 如 be is used they precede the Verb, as :一
we JE 有 好 多 BF, ni shi’ Syaa ‘ho (to Sye, there ave many things here.
we iE {% A 咯 ， al shi’ ha 他 Svat lok, theve ave some heve.
CLXXXI. When Adverbs of Place are used with HR, “hai, they generally
precede the Verb, as:—
我 HR Wi EB 打 个 A; Sngo “hai ci shit “A ko cyan, I struck the man here,
(at this place).
Note 1.—The Dictionaries are again wrong in saying that here is We EB, ai shii’,
and there, 介 iz. ko shi’, These two phrases are undoubtedly the phrases
which are often used when we would say heve or there; but in reality they mean
this place, and that place, and they are not the only phrases which are used in
Chinese where in English one would say here or there. It is therefore far better,
while at the same time they may be best rendered many times in English
ADVERBS. 工 工 工
ADVERBS.
by here, or theve, to remember their construction, viz:— that WE, ai and
> ‘ ,
4H, ko , are respectively this, and that, and that any other word which
represents the English word spot, or place, is used with either of them according to
whether one wishes to say here or there, as :一
we B, cni shit’, this place, English here.
We re, (ni tito, this spot, English here.
We TH, uni ‘tengt, or better, we SF TH, Li tat, “‘teng+, this spot, English here.
个 EB, ko? eha’s that place, English there.
个 管 ， ko? tat, that spot, English there.
2¢ fie Des, 26 :
个 1H, ko tengt, or better, 个 ‘A. TH, ko’ tat, “tengt, that spot, English there.
Note. 2.—If (fel “ko, is used with the last three phrases instead of 个 ， ko’, it
implies more emphasis. If in a question, it would show surprise, as expressed by
the English There! In such a place.
Note. 3.—Where is likewise rendered into Chinese by a number of different
phrases, which are similar as regards the manner oftheir construction to those above.
To represent where oe ) opin*, which, is used, and then any of the other words which
represent spot, or place, such as, EB, shi’, 管 ， tat, 项 ， ‘tengt, 位 ， wai,
a=
| Che
Tp, ha, as :一
» _¢ a ee) - Pet
We ye JB; Hai opin shi’? Where is it, or at what place is it:
Remark.—No Verb is required, or can be used in such sentences. Notice that
where is is transposed in Chinese into és at where.
CLXXXII. The Adverb often occupies a different position in a Chinese
sentence from that it occupies in an English one. When an Adverb is used in
connection with a Verb to amplify its means, it is placed before the Verb
instead of after it as in English. Note the following transposition of ideas
according to our mode of thought. To the Chinese it is, however, the natural
mode of expressing oneself, and ours the unnatural, as:—
English. Chinese.
Come back. Back come, 翻 ee, (fan cat.
Come up. Up come, 上 Be, shéng? caf.
Come down. Down come, He i, lok, caf.
Come out. Out come, Hi gg, ch‘ut, lal.
Go back. Back go, wy . fan how
Go up. Up go, £ #F, Sshong hoi’,
II2 ADVERBS.
ADVERBS.
Go down. Down go, ye 去 ， lok, hoi?
i i)
Go out. Out go, 出 #, ch ut, hot
Down stairs. Floor down, fig 下 ， clad ha?.
Up stairs. Floor up, 楼 kb lait shéng?.
ADVERBS OF MANNER.
CLXXXIII. Adverbs of Manner may be placed in many cases in different
positions in a sentence, as the following examples will show, their position in the
sentence sometimes producing a slight difference in the meaning, as :一
1B 写 得 ER, Skdii Sse tak, £42, he writes quickly.
=o- 45, “kai Sse far? to*tak ，
ie 局 BR 者 人 ， i - > | he can write quickly.
1B 快 都 Jey 得 ，F5iti t0* 'se tak ,
Ea GE ptr fai? t0* ‘se tak ke’, it can be written quickly.
ay WY 》 o >
Note.—The insertion of the Negative even in the sentence does not alter the
readiness of the Adverb of Manner to appear in any part of the sentence, as :一
2 月 Ge aoe Be
伍 pz B saa BR, koi cm se tak, fai,
{B fe pz. B 得 OER, Sait fal cm “se tak ke’, hecan not write quickly.
1B B fe 就 pz 得 OEE, SK Bi “ge fA tsa? em tak, ke
CLXXXIV. 都 ， to", used in the sense of ‘as well,’ ‘also’ is used before
the Verb, as:—
两 个 都 i KB, ‘Jong ko? te" Shai shi’, the two were there also, or as well.
Note.—It appears after the Verb also in other senses.
CLXXXV. if, “kom, or HR ‘kom yéng>*, so, or in this manney precede
the Verb they qualify, as:—
伍 Ey 柑 走 ne, Sa Skom yong?” “tsat ke’, he van like this.
CLXXXVI. When, however, an Auxiliary as , hai, is used, 1, ‘kom,
or IR #88, ‘kom yéng>”, come between the Auxiliary and the Verb, as:—
伍 t 路 rie Soa hai Skom “tsaa, he did so run, or he was running like that.
~ 3* 有 a 已
CLXXXVII. Too, 3 8, kwo tat, and 得 WR, tak, tsaf, follow the
Adjective they qualify contrary to the usage in English, as :一
多 过 UH, cto kwo” tad, there ave too many.
» 7H ey Cosy, 2 ;
Ay t¥ , “shia tak, tsai~, there ave too few
ADVERBS. 13
ADVERBS.
CLXXXVIII. More is often represented in Chinese by 重 ， chung?, as :一
重 有 得 Be, chung? Syaa tak, lai, there is more to come.
重 有 ney (Fp), chung? sya oti* (ct'im), there is a little more.
重 AA, chung” Svat, there is more. :
CLXXXINX. The Negative is introduced into the middle of the phrases,
Ht 然 ， yok, <yin, if, and 自 然 ， tsz? yin, of course, consequently, as :一
车 不 然 ， yok, pat, in, if not.
2 a
8 不 然 ， tsz pat，cyin. See Remark.
Remark.—This last is very seldom used in a negative sense. Strange to say it
is almost always used in a strongly positive sense. Originally it was H DA BR
oes , es ; ， > : é
tsz pit, cyin. but it is often altered in conversation as above, the hr, Bits having
been corrupted in sound into 不 ， Pat
CXC. The phrases Ff AR], shai* chi, and aE 不 ry, shot pat, chi,
though in the one phrase a Negative, 不 ， pat,, not, is employed, and in the
other it is not, have both the same meaning, the idea of which may perhaps
be as well represented in English by the following, as by anything else, v1z.:—
but unexpectedly, but who would have thought it.
Remark.—The phrases Ny 然 ， ving on, still, and ae SK, soi Jin,
although, are never used with the Negative.
CXCI. When a word which represents the Adverb in English is used
with two Verbs in Chinese it is placed between the two, as:—
Without Adverb.
tm sz, ning hoi, take away, ie., lit. take go.
Yep Be, uning (jai, 如 bring here, i.e., lit. bring come.
With Adverb
kip 出 x, ching ch'ut hoi’, take out.
ta A 1g, ning yap, dai, bring in.
Note.— 出 ， and N, yap,, are verbs one may say and the BR, cai,
and +, hoi’, auxiliaries.
CXCII. Adverbs which are used with Verbs to modify, or extend their
meaning are sometimes placed after the Objects, and not immediately after
the Verbs, as in English, while at other times they immediately follow the
Verbs, as in English, as :一
Tif ADVERBS AND PREPOSITIONS.
ADVERBS.
fe. 个 楼 翻 eR, cning ko! ofsun” wd ge | bring back the bottle
$i 18 (Bp, ne be? Jon om |
In these cases the Adverb appears to modify the word te, ching.
e
CXCIII. The Adverb is sometimes left out, as:—
你 AE. ‘Nei (ni? Where were you?
Remark.—This is somewhat like the English, And you? which sometimes
occurs, or the French, Eh vous ?
Note.—Note, however, that it is polite to repeat in answer to a question the
question itself as an answer; but without, of course, its interrogative adjuncts.
PREPOSITIONS.
CXCIV.—Many Prepositions precede the Verb in Chinese, even when
there may be two Verbs in the sentence, though in the latter case they may
be placed with equal correctness between the two. Those which may be
used either before, or after the Verb oftener precede than follow it, as:—
同 我 , tung cgo héi’, g0 with me.
FF 我 去 做 ， ema Sngo hoi’ tsd2, go with me and do it, or go, and do it for me
你 同 埋 我 到 做 ， 和 nkf cang emai Sngo héi’ tso?, go with me, and do it.
去 同 我 TK, hoi” tung Sngo tsd?, go and do it for me, or come with me, and do it.
我 在 WE fai EB 住 有 于 多 年 咯 ， 和 go tsoi ‘ni (kan uk chii2
sya shap, (to chin lok, I have lived in this house ten years, and more.
我 47 Ss DB 个 Ge BEA, cngo ‘ta Soa tat ko” tia 18? yap,,
I entered by the inside road.
你 去 就 打 iy 漫 个 es 路 行 ， 和 nef hi” tsat2 “4 shan pin” ko?
(tia lo? chang+， when you go, go by the voad on the hill stde.
CXCV. Some Prepositions and the clauses they form part of always
precede the Verb, as :一
我 打 BE SE, ‘neo 614 to? now”, 7 went by road.
我 打 响 {fi 3, Sngo “ta “ko pin? kwo’, I passed by that way
1B eB FE 前 THK, “kroa tong ‘ngo min? -ts‘in ts62, he did it in my presence.
CXCVI. The word to used after many English Verbs is represented in
Chinese at times by 3B, kwo’, as :一
个 过 我 ， “pes kwo° <ngo, give it to me.
PREPOSITIONS AND POSTPOSITIONS. ae
PREPOSITIONS.
CXCVII. If the Personal Pronoun is expressed in the sentence, it
comes first, and then the Prepositional Phrase followed by the Verb :一 see
sentences above.
Exception — [J Fi, cyan wai, however, either follows, or precedes the
Pronoun.
CXCVIII. The Preposition is often not expressed, but understood, as:—
留 # 3 我 食 ， clad. fan kwo? Sngo shik,, keep it for me to eat, becomes
留 iF 我 B, Slaa fan § =ngo shik,.
ee Prepositional phrases follow Adverbial phrases, as :一
我 ra Sf yA we E 出， Sngo ting Smaén Chai a shi’ fan’, I shall sleep
heve (at this place) to-morrow night.
POSTPOSITIONS.
CC. Some words which are Prepositions in English follow the Noun in
Chinese, as:—
ial SE, cmin “16ii, within the door.
Fy 处 ， cman ngoi?, outside the door.
yy} Ae nan shéng?, on the person.
ay FA, (sam chung, in the heart.
i 前 ， min2 oom, before the face.
E BB, uk, hat”. behind the house.
Ff I, ‘shaa ha>*, under the hand, or under the command of.
E 内 ， uk no 全 text the house.
>
CCI. Notice that the above words are capable of transposition, and have
a different meaning when so transposed to those given above, as :一
里 FA, 16a man, an inside door.
Ah 门 ngoi? gman, an outside door.
上 ®, shéng2 (shan, the upper part of the body.
V chung sam*, the very centre.
JL, < Be
cts‘in min2, before, or opposite.
hat? uk, houses at the back.
, he? “shat, to move the hand down ; to begin anything.
iE noi? uk 3! houses within an enclosure (seldom used).
Note. _* 落 下 手 ,. kaa lok, ha? ‘shat, hand on to another to do.
II6 POSTPOSITIONS,
POSTPOSITIONS.
CCII. Aftey.—After is placed after its governed words in Chinese instead
of before as in English, as:—-
HE ik 过 和 后， cts'ung Sts'z echt hat?, after these things.
{B ye ee = 后， 和 6 Jok, lat 。 chi hat?, after he came down.
Note.—This appears to be an Adverb of time here.
4 WwW 4 : Cs hand oF
从 & 以 8, a ung Pies yi hau-, from this time henceforth.
ete 5 gan eee £33k ;
元 过 4B, kong cyin chi hat*, after finishing talking.
CCIII. After is sometimes placed after the Subject of the sentence, and
before the Verb, as:—
(EE 后 来 Ng IBF, Skdit had? clof lai ke’, he came afterwards.
Note.—This should really be called an Adverb of time.
CCIV. The English Preposition ‘at’ is not used in Chinese before
time, as :一
—L. Gye 3 Dt e?
Dy 点 BB, luk, tim lat, come at six o'clock.
CCV. ‘By’ when used to show the manner, or route, or method by
which a journey has been, or is to be taken, is represented by 4J, “4,a8i—
47 路 去 ， “ta 102 hoi, to go by road (i.e., by land).
aT OK BK, “ta Sshoit 10? hoi’, to go by water.
4 个 EE 3, “t4 ko? shii? kwo’, to go by that way, ov place.
CCVI. ‘By’ when used in English after a Comparative before a Noun
of Number, Measure, or Weight, or a Number relating to age is not used in
Chinese, the word 有 ， ‘yat, being quite sufficient, as:—
Pr we We Ay. a or 攻
伍 JE Re 你 有 寸 ， k'ou (ke kwo *néi “yat yat, ts lin?, he is taller
than you by one inch.
二 g
=I 有 一 a kwai? yau yat, pin’, it is dearer by one half.
你 重 3) 我 有 一 ir, “Nei “ch'ung kwo? ‘ngo ‘yaa yat, kan, you are
heavier than I by one catty.
站 = Cameos Gs se ie ts 4 :
伍 Sn 过 我 有 == 年 ， *k'dii saf kwo “ngo ‘yat s4m nin, he is younger
than I by three years.
POSTPOSITIONS. 117
POSTPOSITIONS.
CCVII. In a Chinese Sentence when the dimensions of an object are
given the Preposition ‘by’ is rendered often by FJ, “ta, te strike, being an
idiomatic use of that Verb, as:—
nh R (f=) 4j = R (Fa). Sng ch‘ek | (cch 5ng) “ta sam ch'ek | (fat).
ive feet by three feet.
CCVIII. ‘Of’ is not expressed before the name of a month, as in
English, as:—
英 二 月 三 号 ， Ying yt yat, sam ha the 3rd of February (lit. English
second month, and third number).
CCIX. ‘Of’ is also not used after weights and measures, as in
English, as:—
十 yr fai, shap, Han pe, ten catties (of ) fish.
页 R - BAA x, ‘long chek | pan’ sz fat. tuo and a half feet of silk stuffs.
Note,—In Chinese accounts the position of these words would be altered, viz :一
fai, + Fr pe, Shap, (ean, Jish, 10 cattics, ete.
CCN. fal, <t‘ung, means for, and from, as well as with, as:—
HE Pl 1B Be, Snse .enng Ska Smai, 7 bought it from him.
我 同 1B B, Sngo tung Sead mai’, I sold it for him.
Ze Wl 1H HK. ‘neo tung Sea hoa’, I went with him.
CCXI. There is no need to use a Preposition with the Verb Ay ‘ts‘o,
to sit, though it can be, and is sometimes used, as:—
AL: , Sts'o， to sit, or sit down, or to sit on.
Remark.—It will be seen that the Verb AB Sts‘o, represents all these ideas.
Note also the following :一
Ae 落 ， Sts'o lok,, to sit down.
Ape 在 ， Sts'o tsoi2, to sit on.
AR 4E, Sts'o chi, to be sitting on, or fo be sitting.
Ae an 个 处 ， Stso Shang ko” sha’, sit up there
118 POSTPOSITIONS AND CONJUNCTIONS.
POSTPOSITIONS.
CCXII. The word ‘for,’ or phrases ‘in order to’ or ‘in order for’ are
sometimes represented by B®, lai.
1B iC FR] Be VBR 188 BFE, Sioa Snes kan uk, lai “pet Skat chi, he
built a house for him to live in.
但 上 去 Ba 厅 伍 NBR, Sau ‘shong héi? dai pong SK Sui ke’, he went
up in order to assist, or help him.
CCXIII. a, kwo’, occupies sometimes the position of fo, and has that
meaning when used with a Noun, or Pronoun governed by a Verb, or rather
after the Verb ‘to give’ as:—
Aas 过 我 ， cpki kwo” £ngo, give it to me
CCXIV. 过 ， kwo’, can, however, often be understood, the principle of
position shewing that the Noun, or Pronoun must be in the Dative Case.
Remark.—That is to say if 我 ， Sngo, follows such a Verb as HA, “péi, anyone
can see that it must mean fo me. Ergo it is unnecessary to put in the 过 ， kwo”
CCXV. 到 ， to’, is used before Nouns and Pronouns in the sense of to
. 多 . =
arrive at, or reach to, etc., being then, of course, a Verb, as:—
{B HE 日 到 城 ， Sar tsok, yat, to’ zsheng*t, he arrived at Canton yesterday.
1B pz a 得 到 j， Sk aii cm o tak, to’, he could not veach to it.
CONJUNCTIONS.
CCXVI. With regard to Conjunctions the beginner in Cantonese
colloquial must try to do away with all his preconceived notions of joining
sentences together, and speak as rule in short simple sentences, as far as
possible, unconnected by Conjunctions.
CCXVII. The use of a word to express ‘and’ in English is not always
necessary by any means in Chinese, the juxtaposition of several words in a
sentence implying often that there isaconnection. A slight break in the voice
between the different words thus connected will serve to draw attention to the
fact that the words are joined together, as:—
我 , 你 , TB, (都 ) FE Gg WB, ‘nso, Snes, 和 site naw? gk&i* lok 7 you
(and) he (all) went out.
CONJUNCTIONS. II9
CONJUNCTIONS.
CCXVIII. To prevent misapprehension when a number of names of
people, or things are thus joined together in a seemingly unconnected way, it is
common to insert after them words such as 喊 hes nh, cham pa Jang, all,
PX, (ham, all, 都 ， oto" and, or also, etc., and thus group them together, and
show that they are connected, as:—
东 家 , He WEE, OT Be 1, OBR HR OD Sea PA, cone a
(ae a Pe Gy cme < rae SD beg i
nou tung (ea. sal man tsai, cham cP clang ho © -zmun , the master, mistress
(and) children have all gone to Macao.
CCXIX. For the same reason 同 ， cteung,， with, is used where in English
‘and’ would be employed, as:—
English.—He and I ave going. Chinese. — FP 同 1B &. ‘ngo tung
“ki how’, J went with him.
CCXX. With names of persons and things it is also common to introduce
a Numeral in the sentence immediately after the Nouns, which in English
would simply be connected by ‘and,’ as:—
English.—/John, Thomas, Mary and I vead the book. Chinese- 一 我 , 亚 一 ，
nit IN, Ht Hi, 四 个 (人 ) 28 个 部 =, Sngo, A’ yat,, &L pat, & lin,
sz’ ko’ (yan), tuk, ko” po shi, I, A yat, A pat, A lin, four (persons) read that
book.
CCXXI. Instead of a Conjunction being used the Verb is often repeated
before, or after, several Nouns whether they are Nominatives to the Verbs,
or Objects, or in the Dative Case.
4% 水 ， A =, { 个 HR 璃 标 过 我 ， “péi “shou, “péi Siit ， cpef ko? po--
le PE 人 kwo? Sngo, give water, give ice, give a tumbler to me.
我 {i 你 {A {EB H, Sngo “péi Snéi “pés koi lo”, I give it to you, and him.
Note.—This last sentence is ambiguous, and rather bad Chinese, and may mean,
I give it to you to give tohim. A Numeral introduced into the sentence will free it
from this ambiguity and put in in good style, as :一
我 4 Wi 个 人 咯 ， Sngo “péi Snéi “long ko? cyan lok", I give it to you two.
120 CONJUNCTIONS AND INTERJECTIONS.
CONJUNCTIONS.
CCXXII. And is sometimes represented in Chinese by &., dengt, when
used with numerals, as :一
< 一 a =e pe, 十 ， yat, pak clengt yat, shap,, one hundred and ten.
Note.— Fy —-, pak, yat,, is quite enough though.
CCXXIII. But %, _leng, is more often used to denote that a denomina-
tion has been left out, and when twice repeated that two denominations
have been left out. In fact it often takes the place of the nought in the
Arabic numerals, as :一
= 面 zs oy 分 ， yat, “long leng+ yat, fan, one tael and one fun.
ears e— yat_ shap ‘ng ‘long lengt ,lengt yat fifteen
} > 2 5 ¢ >
taels and one li.
Note.—The 一 ， yat,, at the beginning can be left out.
CCXXIV. And is not required in a Chinese sentence when the different
dimensions of an object are given, as :一
hh + 长 = + Fa, ‘ng ts‘iin? ch‘dng sam ts‘in? fat, five inches long
(and) three inches broad.
CCXXV. ‘And’ is often left out between Numerals as in German, as :一
— 百 二 二 十 九 ， yat, pak, yat, shap, “kat, one hundred and nineteen.
INTERJECTIONS, EXCLAMATORY PARTICLES AND THEIR TONAL VARIANTS.
CCXXVI. The following are some of the words used in Cantonese for
Interjections :一
ny, A! Ah! Ho! What!
joe
BE, A21 An! 呵 ， “Ho! Indeed! Oh!
We, Ail On! iT, Ho?! Indeed !
换 ， (At! Alas! EA, (H6! Ho!
Wg, AP! An! | (Ho! Ho!
INTERJECTIONS AND FINALS. I2I
INTERJECTIONS.
ys, <Chiai! Tush! Bosh! Tut! Be, (Hd! Pooh !
ee, Cheb a ce PF, Hoi! Tut! Hullo! (This must
Tit , Ch'e2! A re be pronounced shortly).
Par wad .
i cht! on " AF, (Hoi! or Hoi’! Ah! (This
must be lengthened out in
nF, Ch‘oi! also pronounced ts'ofl
¢ <
pronunciation).
(used by women) Tush ! Bosh ! wk By, SMai (sheng ! Chut !
2 2
Whe? ; E2! Now! 4, ni 呀 ， Mat, “kom 4?! What!
ug, (Ha! Ha! Indeed! Oh! 那 ， Na?! There! 那 那 ， Na? n22!
Cpe 5
WR, Ha! What! Now! Now!
ip’, Ha?! Ah! a, Ne?! There now !
TR, He! Tut! (don't be afraid). nih, 02! Oh!
Dé, “He! What! HZ, Pai?! Alas!
1, (Hai! Here! (Pi! Tush (used by women).
nee, (Hat! Oh! What a bother you are! ye, <Woi! Hulloa there !
BBR, Har?! Alas! nF,» Woi?! Hulloa!
Hng?! Deay me! Fiddesticks !
FINALS.
CCXXVII. Though the Final Particles so freely used in Chinese have
in most cases no exact meaning as separate words, yet they often throw a
strong emphasis upon the sentence, and express in the clearest manner
whether it ‘is Interrogative or Affirmative; whether the speaker is simply
assenting to some proposition that is stated, or expressing surprise at it;
whether a simple statement is being made, or whether it is being stated in
the most positive manner, and with all the emphasis possible; or whether
the speaker is not very sure of what he says, and with this uncertainty asks
in an indirect manner whether it is so, or not. It will thus be seen that
such words as these express different feelings, and modulations of intensity
of such feelings, and bring out different shades of meaning as they are used
singly, or in combination (very much as stops are used in an organ to
modulate, and intensify the sound of the music). It will be seen that such
words as these are very difficult, or impossible even of translation into
English where accent and emphasis alone do their work to a great extent.
122 FINALS.
FINALS.
A proper use of these Finals will bring out one of the niceties of the
language, There isa great beauty in all these variations of meaning of a
sentence, which is often lost when little attention is paid to them. Certain
English scholars of Chinese, who have devoted nearly all their attention to
the fossilised book-language, and despise, in their comparative ignorance of
it, the living language—the colloquial—lose sight of all these, and many
other beauties in the Cantonese colloquial.
It is curious, and most interesting to notice how small and insignificant
a word at the end of a sentence will change the meaning of the whole
sentence, like the rudder at the stern of the ship governing the motions of
the whole vessel.
CCXXVIII. List of Finals, and their Tonal Variants.
iy A ny, interrogative, emphatic, or merely euphonic.
Zi ik Dy, more emphatic.
3. A, 呀 ， emphatic, or merely euphonic.
4. Az PF, emphatic, more so than the last.
5. -cha, ne, cautionary, or restraining.
6. ‘Cha, ey, stronger, or more urgent than the last.
7. Cha, 咱 ， cautionary, or restraining, or delaying, but rarely implying doubt.
8. Che, ny, or nig implying limitation.
9. Che’, We, implying limitation, etc.
10. ‘Ché, be, implying limitation, but stronger than the last.
rr, Chi, BF , emphatic.
¢ ears A
12. Cho, or ‘ché, OH, emphatic.
13. = nee, interrogative.
14. a, whl,
15. Ka, ne,
16. Ke’, nee, somewhat similar to the last, or simply euphonic. This is also a
, emphatic-affirmative.
Genitive particle and present participle particle—and also indicates one who
does a thing. :
17. Ko’, 个 ， same as last.
18. Kwa, ng, implying doubt, or some degree of probability; there is also an
expectancy of a reply sometimes expressed in it,—a re i i k
i ply which will 5
doubt, or intensify the probability. ree
FINALS. 123
19.
20.
21.
22.
23.
24.
25.
26,
27.
28.
29.
30.
31.
32.
33.
34.
35-
36.
37.
38.
39.
40.
4I.
42.
43.
FINALS.
Kwa’, nA, the same as last.
ni
hwo, i>
Kwo’, re,
Pa 便 |， emphatic, or simply euphonic.
, the same as last.
La’, Oe, implying certainty, or simply euphonic.
Lak,, ny, emphatic.
Le, 哩 ， affirmative.
“Le, “ 哩 ， same as last.
Le’, Ri, imperative, or emphatically affirmative.
The best way to indicate the difference between these two series
of Les may be best illustrated by supposing a traveller was telling
a tale the truth of which he could see was doubted by his auditors.
be A, He might use any of the second series of Finals in replying to
Le, 4 哩 any question put to him ns which he conld plainly see there was
»\doubt felt by the questioner; but supposing his tale concluded
Le?, A) ， and corroborative evidence proving that his marvels were truths,
then the former series would be employed by him, their use
giving a slight trace of jubilant triumph, which, if expressed in
English colloquial, might be, ‘There you see that’s just what itis.’
9， We affirmative, or emphatic.
Lo’, wee. same as last.
所
Lok , 咯 the same as last, but intensified in its sense.
o ?
(M4, A, simply interrogative, or interrogative combined with surprise.
“MA, AEE, interrogative and expecting an affirmative reply.
Ma’, ARS, interrogative : asking certainly as to any matter.
Ma Win same as last, or the meaning might be expressed by ‘(I told you
5 ”Li
so before), now isn't it so?’
SMA, ARG interrogative, and expecting an affirmative reply.
7
M22, AES ‘ affirmatively-interrogative.
‘ : : : Bae epee
Me, I, interrogative, or expressing some surprise as well, as—' Is it so?
Mo. BBR,
“Mo, PR, , interrogative, implying doubt.
124
FINALS.
44.
45.
46.
47.
48,
49.
50.
51.
52.
53.
54.
35.
56.
57-
58.
59.
60.
61.
62.
63.
64.
65.
66.
67.
68.
69.
70.
71.
92.
FINALS.
simply interrogative, used after hearing anything said, having
eur! the sense of, ‘Oh! that’s what it is, is it?’
|, emphatically demonstrative.
Ne’. tj \ emphatically demonstrative, used when one might say in
: ee English, ‘There now, what I said was true you see.’
LNe, oy more commonly ni, HE, interrogative, or emphatically demon-
,
ov ni, strative.
Ne z we,
oo 啊 ，
0)， ny, , strongly emphatically affirmative. The first is rarely used.
oO, bys,
Pe’, a, interrogative.
Péi, ne, affirmative.
Po’, HE, very emphatic, used often after the final Nee : lo’.
Pe) 1s
wa’, af
, denoting that the statement preceding it has been made by some
one before.
.Wo, ofa, |, same as above.
|, affirmative.
r, expressing slight surprise.
FINALS. 125
FINALS.
.73- Yak, p32,
74. Yak, 02 , |. affirmative.
75. Yak,, Bz,
76. Yo’,
; | expressive of surprise.
77. Yo,
Note.—Considerably more than half of the above Finals and their Variants do
not appear in any dictionary.
CCXXIX. No definite rule can be laid down as to when Finals are to
be used, or omitted. See CCXXX.
CCXXxX. Use finals at the end of a third, or perhaps nearly a half of the
phrases and sentences (as well as after the same proportion of the single
words) that you use.
CCXXXI. Remember that it is of great importance to use appropriate
ones. Theabove list will show that they have a peculiar and often particular
force and meaning, which is worse than lost if wrong ones are made use of.
CCXXXII. If the same final is put intoa 上 4, shong? cping, and 上
去 , shéng? hoi’, the former has generally more emphasis of meaning than
the latter.
CCXXXIII. The following combinations of {¥, hai?, and 喇 保 ,m hai’,
the equivalents for yes and o in Chinese and a number of different F inals will
give some idea of the shades of meanings that a judicious use of these little
words will admit. A few of them it will be seen are synonymous, but it must
be remembered that it is well nigh impossible to give an exact rendering of
the little shades of difference that exist in their use in Chinese; and the same
particle used in different connections is capable of giving different meanings.
Of course the learner will understand that the English words that appear
below, opposite the Chinese, do not all appear in the Chinese, but where a
certain state of feeling is given expression to in English in certain words, the
same feeling would probably cause the Chinese words that are opposite the
English to be uttered. Itis thus rathera free translation without which it would
be impossible to convey anything of the sense of these little enclitic particles.
I20 FINALS，
FINALS.
I. & ; Hai? Yes, (affirmative).
2. We, “Hai? Yes ? (indicative of great surprise).
3. % ; Hai? le Yes, (you are right it is so).
4. 4% Wi, Hato? Yes, (indeed it is so).
5. t ie Hai? ne Yes, (didn't I say it was 80, or I told you so).
6. 4% WW, Hai? me? Yes? (yes? Oh! is it so?)
7， {% 3 Haf2 ma? Yes ? (‘tis so, isn’t it ?)
8. % HE, Hat ma’? Yes? (it is indeed so, is it not ?)
9. t% PR, Hai? ma’? Yes ? (the same),
10. sk ny, Hai a Yes, (‘tis so).
Il. % UF, Hat 4 Yes, (it is so indeed).
Soy
13.
14. 只 Hai" lo
15. Has? lok,
)
HES, Hag? lo? ma’?
WF,
, Hai? lo?
上 nd, Hai? lo” kwa?
d neh Ha 人 lo”? kwa
: Wh, <
PP)
Pree
Hai? lo me?
POU REO
a
INN RNIN WNW I
Re
Fe
=
AY
23. Ale GK, Hafcm hai? ne?
— CANE AA Har La hai? 4’?
25: {Ale (Ally, Hai? cm hai? 4?
2 th re Au, Hat? cm hai? 07?
It's so, I think.
I think, yes-—I think it so, is it not ?
Yes, all right.
Yes, that’s it.
It's so, is it not, eh?
Oh ! it’s so, is it indeed ?
Yes, ‘tis so.
'Tis so, I think.
It's so, isn’t it?
Indeed it's so?
There, isn’t it so now?
Is it so, oy not? or simply Is it so?
Is it so, ov not? or simply Is it so?
There, didn't I tell you it was so.
Do tell me is it so, oy not P
Remark.—The above list is not exhaustive.
ON THE USE OF SOME OF THE FINALS.
CCXXXIV. iy, (Ar is generally spoken in a short sharp manner, while
the voice often at-times lingers on PF, 4’. The more emphatic ny, Aris
meant to be, the shorter and sharper must be its pronunciation, while the
。 : 4?
converse is the case with regard to If, 4’.
CCXXXV. When touse HY, 4, and, a’. 1. WY, <4 is used when say
the proposition enunciated is disputed, as for instance if one were to say, ‘You
FINALS AND SIMPLE DIRECTIONS. 127
FINALS.
may say it was not hot yesterday, but it was very hot.’ 2. 呀 ， a’, is used when
a simple statement is made, not in opposition to any expressed opinion such
as given in No. 1 above, or it is used when a strongly confirmatory statement
a 4? x < .
is made. PF, a’, and BY, <4, are both used Interrogatively.
CCXXXVI. The Final Me , cha’, is often the final in phrases commencing
with pK, Smai, 喇 Kf, cm ‘hd, etc. It often expresses what in English
would be shewn by the words ‘wait a bit,’ ‘yet a while,’ and ‘yet.’
CCXXXVII. The Final ne, kwa’, can be used alone, or with the
emphatic Finals ppp), 14, PAZ, lo’, Wf, lok, but not with others. When
so used it qualifies this emphatic meaning, introducing an element of
uncertainty, and possibly occasionally a half interrogative meaning is thrown
in as well. This Final cannot be used with Interrogative Finals, such as
m, Z 2 z? > . .
ny, As Py, 4, AB, ma, , me, iB, mo’, and Wg, qi. The Finals
given above comprise all with which it can be used.
CCXXXVIII. Some Affirmative and Interrogative Finals can be used
together, the Interrogative coming last.
CCXXXIX. The Final We, po’, isused alone, or with We lo’, or 咯 ， lok .
See also CKXXVI, Nos. 2 and 4, CXLVI, and CXLVII.
A FEW DIRECTIONS FOR THE GUIDANCE OF THE BEGINNER.
CCXL. When there are several Subject Nominatives to a Verb, or
several Verbs to a Subject Nominative in English, distribute them in Chinese
into short sentences with one Subject alone to one Verb; and put them
separately if you are asking questions, getting an answer to the first before
putting the second, and so on.
CCXLI. Avoid dependent clauses as much as possible. Reduce every
sentence, that is not the most simple in its construction, to its original
elements, and put each as a simple sentence as above.
CCXLII. Do not put several contingencies to a Chinese at one and the
same time. Put cne at a time, if they must be put; but above all things
avoid contingencies, or supposititious cases as much as possible. Some
Chinese cannot understand them at all.
I28 SIMPLE DIRECTIONS.
Remark.—As the Chinese takes his food all minced up, or chopped into pieces,
so he takes his mental pabulum in small doses and cannot understand a long
sentence. If he assents seemingly to what you say, supposing you will persist in
putting a long inquiry to him, formed of several component sentences and contingent
clauses, you will doubtless find he has not grasped the whole in its entirety. He
may assent or dissent, as the European supposes, to what has been said, when at
the same time the whole complicated sentence that the foreigner has constructed
with the greatest amount of ingenuity has gone in at one ear and out at the other
without having made any impression of the sense of it on his mind. He has perhaps
seized hold of the last clause in the sentence, and answered it without any regard
to what precedes it.
SIMPLE DIRECTIONS.
CCXLIII. Omit in long sentences all subsidiary words where possible:—
such as OBR, ke’, (often the sign of the possessive), wth, téi?, (the sign of the
Plural), my, tis* ete., etc.
Remark.—These little words are often omitted with advantage in short phrases
even.
CCXLIV. Unless it is wished to draw special attention to the fact that
what happened was in a Past Tense, or has just been completed, omit, as a
general rule, signs of such past time. The same holds good of Future time.
In fact in Chinese the Tenses need but little looking after: they generally
take care of themselves. :
Note.—This rule holds especially good in long sentences where nearly every-
thing is sacrificed to conciseness.
CCXLV. In an Interrogative sentence begin by saying what you have
to say in Affirmative form, then put an Interrogative Final at the end of
your sentence, or repeat your sentence in a Negative form after the Affirmative
form. Never attempt to use Interrogative constructions as in English.
CCXLVI. Asa rule when replying to a question take the question that
has been asked you, and simply put it in an Affirmative or Negative form,
leaving out when it is an Interrogative-Negative question the Negative or
Affirmative part of the question, as the case may be.
FINAL DIRECTIONS.
CCXLVII. Aim at simplicity of construction.
CCXLVIII. Avoid all complicated sentences.
CCXLIX. Avoid abrupt answers to questions,
CCL. Listen attentively to all you hear.
FINAL DIRECTIONS. 129
FINAL DIRECTIONS.
CCLI. Pick out all the words that are new to you; find out their
meanings from your dictionary, or if you do not find them in your dictionary,
which is more than likely, go to what is a better source of information, the
Chinese themselves; then when you know what they mean, use them yourself.
CCLII. Remember that imitation is a strong point in learning Chinese.
CCLIII. Do not be afraid to speak at all times in Chinese.
CCLIV. Remember that it is considered impolite for a Chinese to laugh
at your mistakes, and consequently he will rarely do it; and if a Foreigner
laughs at you remember that it is he that should feel ashamed with himself
for laughing at you when he probably still makes many mistakes, and not
you for making a mistake while the language is new to you.
CCLYV. You cannot avoid making many mistakes at first.
CCLVI. Bungle on somehow at the very first rather than not speak at
all.
CCLVII. Resolve that you will speak Chinese, and you will do it.
CCLVIII. Ask those with whom you are in the habit of talking to tell
you when you are wrong.
CCLIX. When you can speak a little, take a newspaper published in
English—a local one is preferable—and tell your teacher the news in Chinese
—beginning with the local items first, as this will interest him, and you will
be able to learn a great many Chinese words in this way. At your first
attempt you will find that it seems well nigh impossible to put the English into
Chinese, therefore be content with merely giving your teacher a bare outline
of the contents in your own words, eschewing the leaders at first; after a
while you will find that you have more confidence and a better command of
words, then follow the newspaper more and more until finally you give every
word in the newspaper articles as far as possible. Use your dictionary
freely in this exercise.
CCLX. Learn as many synonymous words as possible.
CCLXI. Practise half a dozen different ways of saying the same thing
in Chinese. You will then find when speaking that if you are not understood
when saying anything, you will very likely be able to put it in another form
which will be intelligible.
CCLXII. Talk over what seem to you to be your mistakes with your
teacher, and find out if they are mistakes, and why they are mistakes, and
what is the right word, or right phrase, or right construction to use instead
of that you have used.
130 FINAL DIRECTIONS.
FINAL DIRECTIONS.
CCLXIII. Do not attempt to talk much with those who do not speak
good Cantonese at first. You will only get confused if you do.
CCLXIV. Speak to your servants in Chinese and make them speak to
you in Chinese. Listen to nothing from them in English, unless you find
that you cannot understand what has been said in Chinese, then, and only
then, as arlast resort when you have used every other means to discover the
meaning of the word. When you have got the English of it then let the
Chinese be repeated to you again, and be prepared for it next time.
CCLXV. Above all things have patience and plod on even if you seem
to be making no progress. A language that has taken the Chinese thousands
of years to develop is not mastered by you in a day.
CCLXVI. Get a good teacher, and trust him rather than your diction-
ary, if the two differ; they often do if he is a good teacher.
CCLXVII. Get some colloquial books, such as :一
‘The Peep of Day ' in Cantonese Colloquial.
‘The New Testament ' in Cantonese Colloquial.
‘The Pilgrim's Progress’ in Cantonese Colloquial.
‘The Holy War’ in Cantonese Colloquial.
‘The Shing YE Hai’ in Cantonese Colloquial.
‘The Bible History ' in Cantonese Colloquial.
‘Robinson Crusoe’ in Cantonese Colloquial.
‘Come to Jesus’ in Cantonese Colloquial.
‘The Old Testament’ in Cantonese Colloquial, etc.
These books can be procured from the British and Foreign Bible Society’s Depét
in Hongkong.
And let your teacher read them over to you until you can read them
yourself, then read them with him. You will find this course of reading of
great assistance. The purely native colloquial books you will find at first of
little use compared with those named above. When you can talk pretty
well you may turn to them as well. :
CCLXVIII. If you are free to follow your own course of study, then
leave the book language alone until you are well grounded in colloquial. You
can find sufficient variety by reading the books named above, and by writing.
The latter will be of great assistance in aiding the memory with new words
learned,
FINAL DIRECTIONS. 131
FINAL DIRECTIONS.
Of course if you are wiser than Dame Nature, who insists that Chinese
youngsters shall learn to speak Colloquial before they learn the book language,
then you will attempt the learning of two languages at the same time—two
languages, be it remembered, that are at the same time so similar and yet so .
dissimilar that it is well nigh impossible to attempt to study the two at the
same time without doing great injury and injustice to one or other, or both.
The colloquial generally suffers, and the consequence, owing in a great
measure to this initial mistake, is that we can boast of but few godd speakers
of Chinese. Therefore, if possible, have nothing to do with the book language
until you have attained a very good knowledge of colloquial—say until you
have worked over it (that is to say if you have been working hard and well)
for a year, or eighteen months.
CCLXIX. Do not be discouraged, however, from what has been said
just above, and do not suppose that you cannot speak Chinese until you have
been at work for months over it. You can begin to speak almost as soon as
you begin to learn, and in half, or a quarter of the time mentioned above you
ought to be able to enter easily into conversation with those about you, if you
have worked with a will, and at nothing else but colloquial.
CCLXX. Remember that the tones are of great importance, but at the
same time do not make them bugbears. Try to learn them well, and then
do not keep hesitating when you talk, as some have done, over nearly every
word, while you think of the proper tone to put it in. You' must first learn
the tone of the word thoroughly, then you will utter it in the proper tone
almost mechanically.
CCLXXI. Remember that the idioms are of as equal importance as
the tones, or of even, if that were possible, of paramount importance.
CCLXXII. Mix with the Chinese as much as you can. Be very
inquisitive and very communicative.
CCLXXIII. Be careful in the use of the so-called Classifiers. They
cannot be used indiscriminately. Only use appropriate ones.
CCLXXIV. Remember that though the colloquial and so-called book
language are very distinct in many respects, different words being often used
for the same thing, yet that there is a neutral ground, as it were, between
the two, and that Chinese native scholars are also often inclined to use what
are really book words and phrases in common conversation. Therefore
when the learner is sufficiently familiar with good, simple, pure colloquial so
as to be able to carry on aconversation of some length in it, his attention
I32 FINAL DIRECTIONS,
FINAL DIRECTIONS.
should be turned to some of these book words and phrases, so as not to be at
a loss when conversing with scholars. At the same time let him not get into
the habit of using such words and phrases habitually when simpler forms will
as clearly express his meaning. If he desires to have a good vigorous know-
ledge of the language, let him cultivate the colloquial element, as in English
he would the Anglo-Saxon element.
CCLKXV. As to dictionaries, the beginner should get the Author’s
Cantonese Made Easy Vocabulary, which will be of use though not containing
so many words as Dr. Chalmers’ English-Cantonese Dictionary. For
Cantonese-English ones, if he is prepared to spend time and money on the
learning of the language, he should get Dr. Eitel and the Author’s Cantonese
Dictionary.
CCLXXVI. As to companion books to study along with the present
book, some of the Author’s other works will be found of great assistance,
such for instance as, ‘How to Speak Cantonese,’ and ‘ Readings in Cantonese
Colloquial’; and for writing, ‘ How to Write Chinese.’ These books are on
sale at Messrs. Kelly & Walsh’s, Ld., Hongkong, Shanghai, and Singapore.
CCLXXVII. Remember that the dictionaries are by no means free from
mistakes. As to pronunciation trust to good Cantonese speakers rather than
to books; the same holds good of tones; it holds good also to a certain
extent with regard to definitions. Let it be remembered that English-
Chinese, or Chinese-English Dictionary making is but in its infancy.
CCLXXVIII. Festina lente.
FINIS.
APPENDIX. 133
APPENDIX.
ExcurRsus I.
CHINESE GRAMMAR.
As the Chinese ideas of Grammar as applied to their own language may
conduce to a fuller understanding of the structure of Chinese sentences, and
the parts that the different words play in the construction of such sentences,
a short account of it is here given. Owing to the peculiarities of the Chinese
language it is much simpler than English Grammar.
Ih the first place words are divided into ‘ai 字 ， shat, tsz?, i.e., real,
or full, or significant words, and ind 池 ， (hou tsz, empty words, or particles.
The former ‘ bave a sense of their own independent of their use in any
particular sentence.’ The latter ‘are employed only for grammatical purposes,
to express relations between words, to connect sentences and clauses, and to
complete the sentence, so that it may be clear in meaning and elegant in
form.’
The next division the Chinese employ is that of a FH, ‘sz tsz?, dead
words, and 1a 字 ， wit, tsz?, living words. The former are Nouns; the
latter are Verbs.
These are the grand divisions which the Chinese employ; and in many
respects they appear to be better adapted for their language—a language in
which a word may be used as a Noun, an Adjective, or a Verb—than our
English complex grammatical distinctions.
Excursus 2.
THE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE BOOK LANGUAGE AND CANTONESE COLLOQUIAL.
It is well that the Learner should understand clearly the differences
between the book and colloquial languages.
To begin with to state the difference broadly, the one may be said to be
a dead language while the other is a living one. The one is essentially the
language of books, of documents, and letters—the written language; while the
other is the language of friendship, of commerce, of intercourse—the speech
of the people—the spoken language.
oy
134 APPENDIX.
The book language is handed down from a remote antiquity, and the
closer it assimilates (in its classical form at least) to the canons of antiquity,
the finer it is considered to be. It is a crystallised form of the language; its
genius is against expansion; while the colloquial is a present day language, and
like all modern spoken languages has a continual growing, advancing, radical
element of slang, and new words, and phrases opposed to the conservative
element of the book language, which is too dignified to descend to slang, and
adopts new words in a solemn and dignified manner. The book language is
concise, terse, and sententious; the colloquial, though the same terms may be
used when comparing it with modern European languages, is diffuse when
compared with the book language.
The book language is not understood without years of study, and even
then the more obscure the diction of its classical form, the more hidden its
meaning, the more is it prized and thought highly of; the colloquial is under-
stood by all from infancy to old age, whether educated, or uneducated.
The colloquial may be divided into a lower, or simpler colloquial, and a
higher colloquial, or one approximating more to the book language in its use,
to a greater or less extent, of certain words, which are not simple colloquial
words. The latter has been termed ‘mixed,’ and it is not a bad term,
for it is a definition as well. The simple colloquial is used by everyone,
and is understood by everyone, the distinction between it and the
higher colloquial consisting in the addition to the simple colloquial, which
forms the basis or groundwork of all speech in China, of a number of
what might be termed ‘dictionary words,’ that is, to put it in a general way
words, which a Chinese child, or woman, would not understand. The more
a man has dipped into books, or the more he wishes to differentiate himself
from the common herd, so much the more he uses these words. It will
therefore be seen that to learn Cantonese Colloquial thoroughly well it is
advisable to learn first the simpler colloquial, which forms the basis of the
spoken language, adding on a higher and higher superstructure, if time and
circumstances permit, in the way of a knowledge and use of ‘mixed’ words,
ie., certain words, strictly book language words, but which custom and habit
have sanctioned the use of in speech when those using them and those hearing
them are sufficiently educated either in books, or in the use of these words,
to render their use intelligible.
It will be seen that with a good knowledge of the simple colloquial one
can go anywhere and be understood by anyone from the highest to the
lowest, who speak the dialect in its purity. It wil] be noticed that only
certain words belong to this ‘mixed’ class, and are capable of being used
.APPENDIX. I35
in the method explained above. It would never do to begin talking
in the book language—it is simply for books and writing—any more
than it would do for, say, a Frenchman to acquire his knowledge
of English from Chaucer, or even Beowulf, and then air his Anglo-Saxon
and old English in modern London.
The book language has also several styles, the high classical almost as
obscure to the unaided student as a nebula to an amateur astronomer with-
out a proper telescope, and in some instances it is so obscure in its sense as
to lead to the belief that the explanations offered are little better than
guesses at the truth, in the same way that none of our telescopes are strong
enough to resolve some of the distant star masses, or clusters of nebulous
matter, and analogy and common sense are the only guides.
There is likewise a simple book language, which is the best to use if
one wishes what he writes to be understood.
There is an official style, with all its set forms somewhat like ours, and
forms of address.
There is a corresponding style, set and formal, abounding in allusions,
which require years upon years of study to fully appreciate.
And a business style in which accounts and business are transacted.
Contracted forms of the characters are largely used in epistolary
correspondence, as well as in the business entries in mercantile books, and
the making out of accounts.
In writing there is also a running hand, and there is also a grass hand,
the latter of which few Europeans trouble themselves about to any extent.
Excursus 3.
THE REASONS WHY EUROPEANS AS A RULE ARE SUCH POOR SPEAKERS OF
CANTONESE.
I. The language is so different from any European Language.
ist. In grammatical construction.
(a). There being no Numbers, or Cases, to Nouns and Adjectives, and no
Moods, Tenses, Numbers, and Persons to Verbs.
136
APPENDIX.
Note.—This though really simplifying the language causes it to appear more
difficult at first, and makes it necessary for the learner to find different ways to
mark, or denote these differences, because a foreign learner of Chinese has been
accustomed hitherto to use all the complicated modes of expressing his meaning
with which European languages abound. European children in China if allowed
equal facilities for learning Chinese as for learning English take to the simpler
language more readily, not having had any difficulties put in the way of its
acquisition by having learned a more complex system of declension and inflection.
In the apparently free and easy way in which a word does duty as a
Noun, Adjective, Verb, or other part of speech as circumstances may
demand.
Note.—In English many words, though perhaps not so many as in Chinese,
are of more than one part of speech, but being familiar with them it does not strike
us as peculiar, and furthermore our dictionaries state them to be of such or sucha
part of speech, whereas in most of the dictionaries hitherto published, for the use of
those learning Chinese, no parts of speech are regularly given, and everything
appears to be in confusion in that respect.
(c). The Prepositions and Conjunctions, which we have been accustomed to
(a).
see in daily use do not appear in Chinese in many cases. In some
cases such words are not needed in the latter language, and in other
cases other particles utterly unfamiliar in their application or use
abound, some of which are untranslatable into English. They therefore
appear like unknown quantities with which we work in the dark.
and. The idioms of the language are so different. This is owing :—
To the people being so differently conditioned that things do not appear
the same to them as to us.
(b). To what is really often a more logical way of putting a matter, but we
having been accustomed to an illogical way of putting the same thing
from our infancy upwards prefer it to the simpler mode. Chinese is
essentially a language for infants, for children, and for simplicity of
thought, not only from its monosyllabic character, but from the natural
sequence with which incidents are related. Of course this does not
always hold good; but it is often the case in Chinese when it is not the
case in English.
3rd. The words in the language do not always express exactly the
same meaning in one language as they do in the other. This difficulty does
not only arise when Chinese and English are compared, but applies to other
languages as well. Such being the case it is not surprising that we should
find a similar state of affairs when we come to compare English and
Chinese.
APPENDIX. 137
(a). These differences are to be seen in the case of a certain Chinese word
having only a limited meaning compared with a word in English which
is supposed to represent it. Consequently some of the shades of mean-
ing which the English word covers will have to be represented in
Chinese by another word, or other words.
(b). The converse when a Chinese word embraces a far larger number of
ideas than the corresponding English word with its limited meaning
can cover.
(c). Complications also may arise, such for instance as the following :一
when a certain Chinese word may be represented in English by one
word, and also may have one or two of the meanings, which another
English word expresses, but not all of them.
Note.—This, however, is very much the same as (a)
(d). The converse of (c).
Note.—This is not surprising when it is remembered that there is scarcely a
single English word which is perfectly synonymous with another word. So-called
synonyms have generally some shade of difference of meaning.
(e). Two apparently synonymous words will often be used together, when
at other times the one or the other will be used alone, and this usage or
non-usage of them together in an arbitrary manner, as it appears to
the learner.
Note.—The difficulties under (e) are increased by the most of the dictionaries
and vocabularies not calling attention to this peculiar method of using words.
4th. It is most difficult to arrive at the correct pronunciation of the
language. *
(a). Because in some instances there is no possibility, or but little, of showing
the correct pronunciation by the use of the letters of the English alphabet.
In some cases there is no analogy in the pronunciation to that the learner
has been accustomed to, and there is but little possibility of representing
a sound, which does not exist in the English language when correctly
pronounced.
Note.—This is especially the case with the unaspirated consonants, k, p, and t,
which are pronounced with a strong aspiration in English as correctly spoken. The
dictionaries and phrase books have helped to increase this difficulty by stating that
k, p, and t, are pronounced as in English, when such is not the case.—The way in
which it is stated in such publications leads the learner to suppose that such is the
correct pronunciation of k, p, and t, when unaspirated, and it therefore would neces-
sarily follow that when aspirated the letters k, p, and t, are, or should be, pronounced
stronger than in English, whereas in truth the case is that k, p, and t, when aspirated
in Cantonese correspond with the correct pronunciation of those consonants in English.
I38 APPENDIX.
Note.—These errors, as well as others, are due to the book-maker following in
bis pronunciation the errors of some predecessor. [In such a case it is most amusing
to see with what dogmatic determination he will, when his error is pointed out to him,
persist in saying that his representation of the sounds is the correct one.] The
reasons of his following the errors of his predecessor are due to the following causes.
In the first place he is as a general rule a miserable speaker of Cantonese, mispronounc-
ing many of the words he tries to utter, and so having no correct standard he takes as
his standard a previous book-maker, whom he believes to be correct in every
particular in pronunciation, and another reason is that the book-maker often has
for his teacher a man who does not speak pure Cantonese and the impure sounds come
into his dictionary or book.
5th. The tones offer apparently a great difficulty to the beginner, and
some always find them difficult.
Note.—Doubtless the difficulty would be decreased in many cases if they were
properly tackled at the first, and tackled with the idea that they must and can be
mastered.
The difficulty is owing :一
(a). To there being nothing similar in European languages.
(b). To people from different parts of the country giving different tones to the
same words.
(c). To different tones being given to certain words at certain times.
(d). To the majority of the dictionaries ignoring the patent fact that there are
more than nine tones in Cantonese, a mistake which leads the learner
into trying to fit every word into one or other of the tones to which it is
supposed, and stated to belong, whereas in truth and in fact it belongs
to another tone entirely ignored by the dictionary maker.*
6th. From the difficulties which stand in his way in trying to acquire
the language from the little assistance he derives from his teacher.
(a). To begin with, his teacher probably knows no language but his own,
which he has never had to learn in its entirety since his memory has been
a sufficient recording power to reflect the whole of his past life in review
before him. He has therefore no knowledge of the difficulties in the way
of a learner, and does not therefore render that sympathetic assistance
which looks out for the difficulties in the pupil’s way and prepares him
for them, or assists him out of them.
* Dr. Eitel’s dictionary is an exception, as he follows Mr. Parker's guidance to a
large extent with regard to the tones, and Mr. Parker is evidently a competent guide in
such matters. Dr. Chalmer’s English-Cantonese Dictionary also gives many of the Variants;
but it and Dr. Eitel’s do not distinguish between the different variant tones, except between
the variant of the Upper Even—all the other variants are grouped together as one and
thesame Tone. The Author's Vocabulary also contains these tones; and Eitel’s new edition.
APPENDIX. 139
(0).
The teacher, finding that the learner does not pronounce the words
correctly after two or three trials, gives it up as a useless effort, and is
content with mediocrity on the part of his pupil from an idea that that
is all that is attainable.
(c). The teacher often has not the power, or ability to explain matters, so as
to put them within the grasp of his pupil. His explanations are given
in words often at the time unintelligible and unknown to his pupil, and
his second or third attempts after the first have failed are probably just
as bad.
These difficulties are not meant to discourage the learner from his arduous
task, any more than the making of a chart is meant to discourage the captain
from taking a voyage. It is to be hoped that the pointing of them out
will enable the learner to overcome them more readily and successfully,
than if he were not aware of them till he suddenly comes upon them, or
gradually learns about them by experience.
1—(
(0).
(c).
Excursus 4.
TITLES OF RESPECT.
a.) K ZEB, sin shang, Bit Wh, (8% .nai*, are the modes used to
address teachers and missionaries; and as has been already stated,
先 生 ， sin shang, is used for accountants almost as the name of
their office as well. No foreigner should of course address his ‘ Boy’ as
I 生 ， sin shang, as he will hear the other servants and Chinese do.
rie 生 ， cs 和 shang, is common to both genders. Sometimes 女 ， ‘noi,
is prefixed to it as 女 先 生 ， Sofa Sin shang, female teacher. fit
Hh, (SZ ,nai®, is only feminine in gender.
主 人 ， ‘chia zyan™, (07 seldom ,yan), iscommon to both genders, and it, or
主 人 IX, ‘chi cyan kung, (or sometimes ,kung*) and 主 人 ee
‘chit yan <P‘0; (or sometimes -p‘o™) are the titles for mastery and mistress used
by slave girls, servants, etc. Gi 家 ， common to both genders,
and 女 Ki 家 ， Snot tung ka, mastey and mistress, are used to heads
of shops, or masters or mistress in private houses.
2 te 2
事 BA. sz ;t‘aa, common to both genders, or 事 DH, SZ
1 Ty 2 Boo F
tat,” 事 Lye] E, sz” .t'aa cp'0， master and mistress, are used by work-
people to their masters or mistresses. These terms should not be applied
to foreigners by their servants who are too pleased to speak of their
140
APPENDIX.
(d).
(g):
employers in this rather coarse manner. It should be remembered in
this connection that 事 ry] UB, sz? tat cp'o, is also a common term
for the mistress of a house of ill-fame. Bit I oid (SZ ta? Yer OF simply
Tk RR, 4? ye, and Bf Tk, s% t*4’, (ov sometimes t‘ai’*) are the
terms to use for the fathers and mothers of teachers, etc., but more
refined appellations are Bit at Ik RR, 2 18 tar cye， and Ei x.
太 I, (SZ “13 t'ai’ t'4i*, The scholars name their teacher's father to
his face as fifi ZA, (sz kung, and his mother 师 Jk, SZ tai’.
Bit Br, csz cye and fh fh, nai ;nai*, are the terms used to Government
clerks and the permanent staff of that class and their wives respectively,
by their slaves and servants.
{yx 24) 471* se Zen
= ‘ ‘
7, RR: lo cye, and Kk Ik , tar tai, or 奶 奶 ， nai znai ,may be
applied to any and all.
z12 Sx re) zeit s fit
A 大 + Er tai* “lo cye， and Jc k , tai’ tai, or 5 Wh, chai .nai*,
are applied to those holding office and their wives respectively.
大 A, tar <yan, and KF A; fa ,yan, are the terms for the officials and
their wives from the first to the fourth rank.
RELATIVES.
The above are the common terms in ordinary colloquial use, besides
these there are polite forms of speaking of a man’s relatives which (the
terms) are very numerous.
(a).
In addressing a man or woman to whom respect is to be shown the
terms given above as respectful modes of address should be used,
according to their position in life, or the speaker’s social, or official status,
and that of the person spoken to respectively. These, however, should
not be used throughout the whole conversation in ordinary cases for a
descent to the ordinary Th, ‘néi, is allowed at times between equals.
The greater the distance in rank or social position between the two thus
talking together, the less often should the 从， ‘néi, be used.
(2). A man’s wife is styled, in respectfully speaking to the man, as 夫 人 ，
fa cyan, oy -yan”, or 2) K 人 ， ctsin fa -yan*, ov cyan, when she be-
longs to a respectable family, and 全 YE; ling* ching’, no matter what the
APPENDIX. I4I
position of her husband is. The answer to this style of address should be 内
人 ， noi? <yan, or Bu FHI, chit, king, or 4) zr, king ,ts'af， tes RR,
Kai? shat,, is a second wife and ie 5, <t‘in .fong. She is generally
spoken of asa first wife would be. If not, 合 ， ling?, would be used before
the above and the reply would be as for wife, or the above terms used.
(c). A man’s son is to be spoken of as 4y ys: ling? zlong*. He should
speak of him in reply as 小 A ‘sia cyb very seldom as AK bi,
ttn cy 和
A man’s daughter is to be spoken of as -F 金 ， ts'in kam*, or 4 爱 ，
ling? of”. In replying the man should refer to her, or he should speak
of her as 小 Zr, ‘siti “ndu*, (or sometimes ‘ndii).
The above can be applied to any class of persons, but officials’ sons
should be spoken of as Ly 子 ， kung ‘tsz, and their daughters as 女 公
子 ， Snot kung “tsz.
分 女 XR, ling? not ssun*.
In his reply he calls them his 小 F%, “sit ssin®, or bp Xe “sia
‘noi _siin™.
fe)
(ce), A man’s concubine is spoken of to a man as 合 FE, ling? ‘ch‘ung, or
如 夫 人， oa J yan
He calls them in reply his 小 x, ‘sit ts‘ip, and his 便 室 ， chak，
shat,. More colloquially they are known as 二 奶 ， y?? ni， 一 奶 ，
sam nai*, etc.
要 口
(f.) A deceased concubine is spoken of as 先 合 ae. sin ling? ‘ch‘ung.
In reply 先 x, sin ts‘ip, is used, but more often [7 ye <mong
ts‘ip .
o
A man’s father is spoken of to him as 合 Fe, ling? tsiin, or as rc) 8,
sin yung*. He is mentioned in reply as 家 4, ka fa’, or 家 he
(ka cyim.
A deceased father is mentioned to the children as a Fe A, ling?
sin Wan，
APPENDIX.
(i).
If the father is dead, the son refers to him as I 4; sin fa? (my late
father), or 先 ie sin yim, and to the mother as 先 其 ， sin ‘md, or
Ie SH, sin <t'sz, or 4 K A, ling? (sin ct'sz，
A mother is 4 ae ling? t‘ong, or 合 3 ae ling” shat? .tiong.
In the reply she is styled 家 FF, ka ‘mo, or 家 x, (ka ct'SZ，
A mother-in-law is styled by a daughter-in-law when alive as 家 th;
oka kwt, or more commonly as 家 Be, (ka ;p‘o*. When dead as
先 hh, sin kw.
《 ¢
. A grandfather is spoken of as 4 mH. ling? ‘tso. On the mother’s side
as 4 Ah iH, ling? ngo ‘tsd. In reply drop 4, ling”, and prefix
家 ， ka
A grandmother is spoken of as 4 ji £F, ling? ‘tsd $md. On the
mother’s side as 4 处 租 -Ef, ling? ngoi?* ‘tsd ‘md. Use the same
style of reply as with grandfather.
An elder brother is 4» Jf, ling* hing.
And the younger brother speaks of him as 家 HL (ka ching.
A younger brother is a HH, ling? tai?.
And the elder brother speaks of him as sg HH, she’ tai*.
Collectively, or several of them are spoken of, as 3% 位 RR 5,
‘kéi wai? hing tai’.
C 2
And by one of themselves as FS NH HH, tsin? ching tai’.
But speaking of a man’s brothers altogether they are called 4y B 仲 ，
ling? kwan chung*, as 有 Ba 多 位 eS B 4h, £Vau és _to* wat
2) ling? 2?
(ov wai?) ling ”kwan chung? :
. . : 2¢ : . tos
An elder sister is 4 UF, ling ‘tse, in making enquiries.
The person enquired of in reply states her to be his 家 Hh, ka “tse.
APPENDIX. 143
(J).
A younger sister is 4 Kk, ling? mu?*
And she is mentioned in reply as 会 i she? mui?*,
Sisters cannot be joined together as brothers can. One must ask,
A HBF He, SVau “kei oF wai>* ling? ‘tse? and after that,
有 i 多 位 会 兮 RK, SVat ‘kéi stor wai?* ling? mu???
. In making enquiries of cousins, or mentioning them, to one of the num-
ber, they should be named as 4 ra yt, ling? ‘pia hing*， 命 KX HH,
ling? “pid tai? (or tai?) , & £ Ah, ling? “pid “tse, Ay KX HK, ling?
‘pid mui?, according as to whether they are elder or younger, or male or
female. In the replies the word a, she’, is substituted for As a? ling’,
or 合 FH: ling? fa hing.
Speaking of paternal uncles to their nephews and nieces one should say
合 BL ling? shuk, for an uncle younger than the father of the one
addressed. Ay re , ling? pak, fa?, is a father’s elder brother.
7K {A (FR) \, tai? pak, (,ye), is used if a woman is asked about her
husband’s elder brother. The younger is 合 K Hh, ling? fa tai.
With regard to maternal uncles, a B 4, ling? ‘k‘aa fa, or the
terms are for younger or older 4 FE B , ling? ‘mo Sk‘aa. a GH x,
ling? yi ching’, is a brother-in-law of one’s mother, i.e., her sister’s
fusbernd whether the sister be younger or older, but Fi hh x, ling?
kwa chéng>”, is a father’s sister’s husband whether this sister is older or
younger. 大 ， tai’, is prefixed for one older and the numbers one, two,
or three prefixed do for others.
Of Aunts :— 合 ie, ling? ‘sham, is the address to be used of the wife of
the paternal younger brother; Fy 伯 Pf, ling? pak, ‘md, is the wife
of the elder. 合 vin FE; ling? ‘k‘am ‘m6, is the aunt on the mother’s
side.
In all these cases in the reply with the following exceptions the word
家 ， (ka, is substituted for 4}, ling’. The exceptions are in 姨 x,
oi chong? (or ching’), and 4 EF, ‘k*am Smo, when only those words
are used in reply, ov Re, pai?, is used. With & hh ag, ling? wa
144
APPENDIX.
(?).
(m).
(1).
chong™*, generally > (or ffi ) ¥H, she? (or pai’) ts‘an (or ts‘an*)
is used in reply, ov chéng?, Rx hh a pai? .kwi chéng”*, (or chong?) is
sometimes used in reply instead of the other two forms.
. For father-in-law, 4 Fe, ling? ngok,, or a Fe zk, ling? ngok,
chéng?’, or AS 山 ， tar’ shan, but it is better to put 合 ， ling?, before
泰 i, tar shan, and in replying he is styled 家 fr, (ka ngok,.
For mother-in-law 4> 后 EF, ling? ngok, “‘mo*. And in replying she
is styled 家 FE ff, kA ngok, ‘mo.
A son-in-law in polite enquiries is styled “4 KS, ling? sai, and in
replying 小 1S, ‘siti sai’.
The wife’s relatives are, of course, according to Chinese ideas, not so
important. Outside the immediate family of the wife it is apparently
sufficient to speak of them in making any enquiries with the respectful
prefix of 4, ling’. They are not near enough for the man to depreciate
himself, or them, in reply.
The brothers of a wife are all of them collectively oy 5B, ling? Skat.
In reply the man speaks of them simply as FR OBE He BA, ‘ngo ke’
A? ‘k‘at, or as 会 B, she’ ‘k‘at.
An elder one is politely styled 分 大 Bs, ling? tai? §k‘aa, and spoken
of in reply as 大 BB, tai? ‘kat.
A younger one is & 小 BS, ling? ‘sit “k‘ad, and spoken of in reply as
小 B, ‘sia “k‘aa. But unless one is very familiar with the family
there is no necessity for one to be so very particular in one’s enquiries.
A general enquiry about the lot collectively is generally sufficient.
A wife’s sisters are spoken of only collectively in polite enquiries as a
GH HE, ling? <yi an6ng ; and in reply referred to as GH HE, cyi mong.
A wife’s grandfather and grandmother are spoken in polite enquiries
2s & He Hg ling? rap ngok, chong?, and 4p fe FE A, ling? va?
ngok, ‘md. In replying the aT, ling’, should be dropped and 家 ， ka
= :
prefixed.
APPENDIX. 145
(0).
(4).
A wife’s uncles are 4 FL aw, ling? shuk, chéng?” (younger than her
father); <> 44 re ling? pak, chéng’’, (older than her father);
合 B x ling? ‘k‘aG chéng®”, (on her mother’s side). The wives of
these are designated by adding +, ‘m6, to the above.
A wife’s cousins are spoken of in polite language as, males, a Fc B,
ling? ‘pid £k‘aa, and, females, as “4 KR i, ling? ‘pit Sk‘am, and others
as a 表 bit ling? ‘pit ching，or a ra ee ling? ‘pia ‘sé, or a
KX RE, ling? “pia cnong.
In this connection it may be as well to point out some of the styles of
speaking toa man of his names, his business, etc., and the mode of reply-
ing thereto.
(@.) In speaking of a man’s surname to him call it his tsiin, 高 , ko, 上，
(5).
(c).
(4).
shéng?, or =5 HE, kwai sing.
In answering you he may style it his yJy, ‘sit, FRE, tsin?, or RK HE, pai*
sing’. But see note below.
With regard to his names they should be called (1) 大 号 ， tai? ho;
(2) ci] +, tsiin tsz?; (3) G FB> «toi ‘po, as the enquiry is made
concerning each of his different styles of names. He replies to (1) as
小 BE, “sia hd*, to (2) 小 =. “siti tsz*; (3) as 小 BY, ‘sid pit,, or
very seldom 草 Be ‘ts‘o hd*, but see note below.
In speaking of his house it should be styled to him as cI 府 ， (1) ctsiin
“fa, or (2) 大 府 ， tai? ‘fa, (if in Hongkong Pa JB, _tstin yi, if he has
no property in the Colony and is not resident here).
The replies may mention them as yp 合 ， cmat she’, 草 a, “t*so
she’, or if it has been styled JE, <yi, as RK J, pai* yi.
A man’s shop is mentioned to him as = 号 ， “pd hd.
He speaks deprecatingly of it in reply as a 小 店 ‘sia tim’.
He is asked as to his business, 做 世 BX 47, Tso? mat, shing? chong?
(or zhong*).
What is your business? or it is referred to very occasionally as, =a =,
kwai? yip,.
146 APPENDIX.
He spéaks of it in reply as, ifa 47, chong, a Ae 47, tsin? hong, or
better and more refined as Ri 行 ， pai? hong, or itis a Be 业 ， tsinz
yip,.
(ec). A man when asked about his relative position in his family has it
déscribed as Pa 47, ,tsiin ,hong. He replies, as the case may be, #7
—, hong yat,, (or 第 =, tai yi), ete.
(f). The respectful enquiry as to one’s age is c= BR, kwai’ kang, the reply
3e, 2%
is As 庚 ， tsin kang.
(g). A man’s province, country, or city is referred to as ET 省 ， kwaf
‘shang, c= 国 ， kwai’ kwok ， or =F a kwaf? yap,.
He refers to them in reply as fff 省 ， pai’ ‘shang, RK [i], paf kwok,,
or kk fa, pai? yap,.
Note.—It has become the fashion to say in answer to ‘What is your
honourable, or high, etc., etc., surname?’ simply, my surname is so and so
without any deprecatory terms; and even with regard to a man’s personal
names to leave them out.
EXCURSUS 5.
A class of words in use as nouns, adjectives, or adverbs, which recall the
horsy-porgy, coachy-poachy days of our infancy in the West, are largely em-
ployed. It is perhaps scarcely fair to compare them to such infantile words as
above; for they are not puerile, though doubtless oftener used with people of the
younger generation than with the more sedate elders. It might be more just
to compare them with hurly-burly, higgledy-piggledy, topsy-turvey, etc. In
Cantonese these words are almost always if not always used in a trisyllabic
form.
Black 5 SoU, hak, ,ma ma Crooked a th 曲 , wan kok k‘uk,.
or hak, cm4 ma
Wet , sh 2 nam?
or 黑 墨 墨 ， hak, mak, mak, ° 澡 脸 脸 ， 人
六 wh 一 有
ot 筷 廊 麻 ，wa ,ma ,ms or WAIL IE, shap, lap, lap,
or Blas, ;wa,mang mang. or TARIEH, shap, nap, nap,.
APPENDIX，
147
FAFA PA, pak, sik, sik,.
White
Red 红 当 当 ， chung tong tong ，
or chung tong’ tong? |
or chung ctong tong?
eh 2h 和
Blue BEES, clam of ‘of
or BEATE A> <ldm wat, wit,.
BED AK, clam wit, wit,
SWE, luk, win? win?
or OSES luk, wit, wit).
SE i a ae
Tender green 再 FAA, cts'engf+ .péi péi.
Bright blue
Bright green
Yellow WSR SR, Wong song song
or,wong song song”.
Acrid PAA, lat, chim him.
Sour Pas HK AK, (sin kwi cewi,
Bitter HE 7] 7] , ‘fa tit tia.
Salt BR ~) cham nan nan
or cham nan nan’. t
Sweet aE aS) ct fm nam? nam?
Long 长 in cch'dng ,nit cenit
or ch'dng cnia cnia，
or cch'dng cnfa cnfa，
Short 短 匹 匹 ， ‘tin p'at, p'at,.
Broad Fey epi, toe, 122122.
Narrow
Fame ie, chak, ngit, ngit,
or chak | kip, kip, ‘
| 热 辣 冻 ， yit, lat, lat).
Hot, both food
and weather
Cool Rig long? tsam’ tsam?,
Soft 软 脸 胎 ， cyiin nam? nam?
or 软 险 任 ， Sin yam yam2.
Stiff, as a tpt . 2
corpse, hard |B BEBS, ngdng? ngaa ngai
Stiff, asa star-
ched peace, BiB FS FAS, nedng? pong pong
Round TBs BB, cylin tam? to2.
Bright SE RERE, |
Dark The same as under Black.
Dry BF BEBE, kon ,ngit ngda.
Slippery ia Bi) i) , Wat, lit, lit).
Rough pe Se Se, chai sap, sp).
Tall PAA, <8 tung? tung?.
Short FEM, ‘af tat, tat.
Good 好 地 地 ,ca ter? ter.
Bad HEWCRE, ok, tan tan.
Thick J WAY Ih, Shad nap, nap,.
Thin Je EME. pok, hit, hit).
Heavy EB 79794, Sch'ung nik, nik,.
Light HHH, cheng+ .p'aa ,p'aa
Sinewy SAD, mean? uma nm
or ngan2 cma ,ma.
Brittle, or = i.
ae sgt | 胞 吸 吸 ， ts‘oi? ngap, ngap,
of STAG, "sa, nap, won
Fat or stout 肥 BHI, <féi nap, nap,
or oily or cféi nap, nap,
or ACES, sdf tap, tap,.
Lean fee Py a, shat’ sok, sok |
OF yes tc Nise, shad’ ‘mang ‘mang
or ea EE BE shat” mak | mak.
Sharp FAVE PL , ler? P'at) piat,.
Blunt HEH, kwat, cch'o cch'o
Cold TR Ra, tung’ tit, tt
or SR OKDK, tung’ ping cping，
Warm BRI Sniin nap, nap).
Ripe FARE shuk, cnam ,nam.
Raw AE URES, Shang cogaad ngaa.
old 4 YAR, kas? mit, mit,.
or HEE, S18 ngit, ngit,
Note 1.—Or cham nan? nan?.
I48 APPENDIX.
a person
Young 新 活活 ， san wat, wiit,. Fragrant a Ga hong am? am’.
Tender (as
re)
a bashful | ge DC, niin2 p'at, p'at, Stink By, ch'at -hang -hang.
girl) Correct, or as oe 2
, Ah | ching’, or cheng’ 二
Wey Hine chan chtam also self- i |
= 嫩 沈 沈 ， ae ee ees aio alt | . Pc I
Noisy ab BY Ag, <t’s paf pai? Awry ZR, “méi chi ech'aif.
. 3 . 2 {i {a ;
Quiet Pt Aa BA tsing? (sia sia Close tee Sa, mat, tsat, tsat,.
Quiet, as ther
alone, or as 2P ip by cp'ing tsing? tsing?. | Loosely ;
an uninha- PUNPIy (placed) : 芯 吵 fg] sho lak_k‘wak..
bited house the opposite | J < 0 o
of theabove
BRD ie Wi
Confused LAE tS, lin? utso tso ， 有
ngr a
or ctso ctso ltin2. BLY By 时 + > hau Aang hang
ie ad
u pau’.
Orderly JAR, wa ‘cning ‘cing | BDI, nt 0”
is “id er
Laugh sit’ héi héi.
Obtuse 墨 墨 黑 ， mak, mak, hak, aus 笑嘻嘻 ， 和
fe neh ce : Terme er
or RAs, wa sd? 862. Smile AE eR , sia? chi ch’,
The position of the words is reversed in nearly a dozen (11) of the above
expressions, two or three instances are already given above, but in such
cases it is the originally second word which is still duplicated. The instances
are as follows:—
Mak, mak, hak,
¢Nia cnfa cch'ong in the phrase, for example, ‘as days are long.’
Lat, lat, yit, with the meaning something fresh or new, or which has just happened
ee recently.
Tsam' tsam' léng? unknowing, as, for instance, not being aware of an impending
calamity.
(Nga .ngd kon
Ts‘ap, ts‘ap, ts‘dii'
Nap, nap, Sniin
Ngati ngat shang “
cTso .tso hiin2 or ctso hiinj*， This is the only case where in the reversal of the
words two syllables are used as well as three.
Am? am? (hong
ae a2 wd on *
(wa s6? s62，s62 sb2 cw
In the last case the two phrases are used together, 7.¢., the reversed form
is not used alone.
As far as we can ascertain these eleven are the only ones, out of all
these numerous phrases tabulated above, where a reversed form of the words
is employed.
It will be noticed that in a few cases there is a slight change in the
meaning of the words when transposed in this way.
INDEX.
INDEX
TO SECOND, OR GRAMMATICAL, PART
OF
CANTONESE MADE EASY.
THE ROMAN NUMBERS REFER TO THE SECTIONS, AND THE FIGURES TO THE PAGES.
A
A’, Hi, XXX, Note, 44.
Adjectives formed from Nouns, LXVIII, 66.
Adjectives, Position of, LX, 62.
Adjectives, Position of, with Classifier, XLIII-
LIII, 47-49.
Adjectives,
XLVIII, 47.
Adjective used attributively, LX, 62
Two, with Classifier, XLVI-
Adjective used predicatively, LX, 62.
Adverbs, Comparison of, CLXXIV, 108.
Adverbs of Manner, CLXXXIII, 112.
Adverbs of Place, CLXXIX, 110.
Adverbs, Position of, CLXXV et seq., 109 ef seq.
Adverbs of Time, CLXXV ef seq., 109 et seq.
Adverbs used to denote Time instead of Tense,
CXXIII et seq., 86, et seq.
After, CCII, 116.
And left out, CCXVII-CCXXV, 118-120.
And, Other words used instead of, CCXVIII-
CCXXII, 119-120.
Answer, Same words used in, as in question,
CXXXVII, 92.
Any left out, CIX, Note 1, 80.
Article omitted, XXXIV, 44.
Article, No, used before half, XXXIV, 44.
Article used before Classifier of persons,
XXXV, 44.
At not used before Time, CCIV, 116
Auxiliary words used with Verbs, CKXXV, or.
B
By, CCV, 116.
Cc
Cardinal Numerals, Part I, 3.
Case shown by position, XI, 38.
Case, No, in Chinese, X, 38.
ons 之 ， sign of Possessive, XVIII, 39.
2
Chung, FA, LXIL 63.
Chrut,, 出 ， Idiomatic use of, CLXIX, CLXX,
(2) 106, 107.
Classifier, Definition of,
44-45.
Classifier dropped, or retained, in Plural, LII,
LIII, 49.
Classifier, Every Noun has
XXXVIII, 45.
Classifiers, Genuine, XXXIX, 45.
Classifier used instead of Indefinite Article,
LV, 50.
Classifier, Mistakes in use of, XXXVIII, 45.
Classifiers, List of, LVI et seg., 50 et seq.
Classifier, Position of XL-LIV, 45-49.
XXXVI-XXXIX,
appropriate,
I50
INDEX.
Classifier used after Noun, XLI, XLII, 45, 46.
Classifier used alone, LIV, 49.
Classifier used with We, cni LI, 49.
Comparative formed by ney, oti*, LXI, 63.
Comparative formed with _E shéng?, LXVI,
Remark, 64.
Comparative, 更 ， kang’, used for, LXII, 63.
Comparative of Adjectives, LXI-LXVII, 63-65.
Comparative of Adverbs, CLXXIV, 108.
Comparative of Equality, LXIII, 63.
Comparative, Qualified, LXI, Note, LXII, 63.
Comparative, Repeated, LXIV, LXV, 63, 64.
Comparative, Repeated, Use and non-use of
起 ， yiit,, with, LXIV, LXV, 63, 64.
Compass, Points of, XXVI, 42.
Conjugation, No, in Chinese, I, 36.
Conjunction in Subjunctive often understood,
CXVIII, 84.
Conjunctions, not used, CCXVI, 118.
D
Dates, LXXV et seq., 69.
Dates, Inversion of, LXXV, 69.
Dates, AN, ch'o used with, LXXVI, 69.
Dates, HP, ho, used with, LXXVIII, 70.
Dative placed between two Verbs, XII, 38.
Days of the week, LXXV-LXXXIII, 68-71.
Declension of Personal Pronouns, XC, 73-74.
Demonstrative Adjective Pronoun with Classi-
fier, XLV, XLVII, L, LII, LIII, 47, 48, 49.
Demonstrative Pronouns, C, et seg., 78 et seq.
Difference between ‘he scolded me,’ and ‘he
said to me,”’ XI, Note, 38.
Difference between ae, shik,, and AN, chi,
CLXXII, 107-108
Difference between ‘to buy,’ and ‘to sell,’
CLXXIII, 108.
Distributives and Indefinites, CIX, e¢ seg , 80
et seq.
| Distributive Numerals, LXXXIV, 72.
eager : Cae
Distinctions in the use of HE, tai, ‘to be
worth,’ CLXXI, 107.
Division of month into three, LXXVII, 69.
E
Emphasis, CXXXIV, or.
Euphemisms used for death, CLXVI, 105.
Expressions dencting time, LXX XVI, 72.
F
Finals, CCXXVII et seg., 121 et seq,
Finals, List of, CCXXVIII, 122 et seq.
Future Tense, CXXII, CXXIII, No. 3, 86.
G
Gender, XIX et seq., 39 et seq.
Gender, Context shews, XIX, 39.
Gender, not inherent to Chinese word, XXV,
42.
Gender, not necessary condition of Chinese
. word, XXV, 42.
| Gender of names of animals, XXIII, 4o.
|
Gender of names of birds, XXIII, 40.
| Gender of names of human species, XX-XXII,
XXIII, Note, 39, 40.
Gender, often not used when necessary in
English, XXV, 42.
Gender used to prevent confusion, XXV, 42.
Gerunds, CXXI, 86.
| H
Half, XXXI, 44.
cHangt, 47, Idiomatic uses of, CLVIII,
CLXIX, 100, 106.
Goer . ,
Hé, 起 ， Idiomatic uses of, CLIX, ror.
H62 Be, used with dates, LXXVIII, 70.
INDEX.
151
Hoi, BY Idiomatic uses of, CLX, 101-102.
《 ?
Hui’, 去 ， Idiomatic uses of, CLXIII, 103.
I
Imperative (mood), CXVI, CXXVIII, 84, go.
Impersonals, CVII, 80.
Indicative, CXVI, 84.
Inferior named before Superior, XXIII,
Remark, 41.
Infinitive, CKVI, CXXVIII, 84, 89.
Infinitive, No Preposition before, CLIV, 96-97.
‘In order to,’ or ‘for,’ CCXII, 118.
Interrogation,
Affirmative, CKXXVI, No. 4, Note, 92.
Interrogatives, CIII et seg. 79 et seq.
In, sentence is same as in
Interrogative formed with rising intonation
CXXXVI, No. 1, gr.
Interrogative-Negative,
CXXXVIII, 91, 92.
Interrogative Particles, CKXXVI, No. 2, 91.
See also List of Finals, CCXXVIII 122 et seq.
Interrogative Pronouns, XCII et seq., 75 et seq.
Interrogative Sentences, CXXXVI-CXLI, 91,
93.
Intonation, rising, Interrogative formed with,
CXXXVI, No. 1, or.
K
Ke’, YS sign of Possessive, XV, 39.
CXXXVI, No 3,
Ke’, OBR, understood, XVI, %.
Ko’, {ff], used for Definite Article, XXXII, 44.
Ko’, 个 ，used without Classifier, LI, 49.
“Kom, WEL, or ‘kom “yong*, eR AR, Position
of, CLXXXV, CLXXXVI, 112.
“Kwa, th, used for Masculine, XXIII, 4o.
Kung, 公 ， used for Masculine, XXI, XXIII,
40. .
Kae’, 3h, uses of, CCXIII, CCXIV, 118.
Kwo? tau, 过 UB, follows Adjective,
CLXXXVII, 112.
|
|
i
{
L
Lai, Be, used for ‘for,’ etc., CCXII, 118.
Lai, ig, Idiomatic uses of, CLXIII, 103-104.
Large half, XXXI, 44.
<Lengt, BR, Uses of, CCXXIL CCXXIII, 120.
“La, 伐 ， used for Masculine, XXII, 40.
Lok,» J, Uses of, CLXII, 102-103.
Long month, LXXXI, 70
M
Marry, to, Different words used for, CLXX, 107.
Meaning shows Mood, CXVI, 84.
Month divided into three, LXXVII, 69.
Month, Long, LXXXI, 70. ;
Month, Short, LXXXI, 70.
Moods, CXV, CXXVIII, 83, 89-90.
More, CLXXXVIII, 113.
More, or less, LXXIII, 68.
N
‘NA, {He applied to women, XXIII, Note, 40-
41.
“Na, ie, used for Feminine, XXIII, 40-41.
Nam, 男 , used for Masculine Gender, XX, 39.
Negative following Verb, CXLI, 93.
Negative, Position of, CXL-CXLIV, 93, 94,
Negative precedes Verb, CXL, 93.
Negative used with ¢f, of course, consequently,
CLXXXIKX, 113.
New and old, not old and new, LXIX, 66.
New Year's day, LXXX, 70.
New Year's eve, LXXIX, 70.
No, CXLV, 94.
No one, CXLIX, 95.
Not, Do, CL, 95.
Nothing, CXLVIII, 95
Noun, same, either Masculine or Feminine,
XIX, 39.
Nui, 女 ， used for Feminine Gender, XX, 309.
152
INDEX.
Number in Verbs, CXXV, et seq., 88 et seq.
Numeral Adjectives, LXX et seq., 66 et seq
Numeral Adverbs, LXXXV, 72.
Numerals, Cardinal, Part I, 3.
Numeral often used when no plural would other-
wise be shewn, IX, 37.
Numeral used for Article must have Classifier,
XXXIII, Note, 44.
Numeral] used with Classifier, XLVIII, XLIX,
LITI, 47, 49.
O
Object, Position of, XII, 38.
Object, Position of indirect, CLV, 97.
Object, Position of, with two Verbs, CLITI, 96. -
Object taking precedence of other words, XIV,
38.
Object placed between two Verbs, XIII, 38.
Obvious meaning shews Case, XI, 38.
Of, CCVIII CCIX, 117.
Ordinal Numerals, LXXIV, 68.
Pp
Pak, yer. {Ff ft, XXI, Note 40,
Participles, CXX, 85.
Particles, Interrogative, CXXXVI, No. 2, 91.
See also List of Finals, CCXXVIII, 122.
Passive Voice, CXIII, CXIV, CXXXIII, 83, gr. |
Past Tense, CXXII, CXXIII, No, 2, CXXIV,
86, 87.
Past time shewn by changing the tone, CXXIV,
87, 88.
Person in Verbs, CXXV, CXXVIII, et seq., 88,
89, et seq.
Personal Pronoun left out, LXXXVII, 73.
Personal Pronouns preceding Noun in Apposi-
tion, XVII, 39.
Personal Pronoun preceding Noun in Posses-
sive, XVII, 39.
Phrase, A, used to express Plural, VIII, 37.
Plural formed by reduplication of Noun, VII,
37-
Plural of Demonstrative Pronoun, CI ef seq.,
78-79.
Plural of Interrogative Pronoun, XCIV,
XCVIII, 76, 77.
Plural of Personal Pronoun, LXXXVIII, 73.
Plural shewn by general context, V, 36.
Plural shewn by qualifying words, V, 36.
Plural, Sign of, VI, 37.
Plural understood from sense, IV, 36. ;
cP'o, Be, used tor Feminine, XXI, XXII, 40.
Position, everything in Chinese sentence, II, 36.
Position often shows the part of speech, II, 36.
Position of Object, XII, 38.
Position of Preposition, CXCIV et seg., 114 ef
seq.
Position of Subject, XII, 38.
Position takes place of Declension aud Conju-
gation, II, 36.
Possessive Case, XV-XVIII, 39.
Possessive Case of Interrogatives, XCIII,
XCVII, 76, 77.
Possessive of Personal Pronoun, LXXXIX, 73.
Postpositions, CC, 115.
Predicatively, Adjective used, LX, 62.
Preposition, No, before Infinitive, CLIV, 96-97.
Preposition, Position of, CXCIV, et seq., 114
et seq.
Preposition understood, CXCVIII CCXI, 115.
117.
Preposition with ‘to sit,| CCXI, 117.
Present Tense, CXXII, CXXIII, No, 1, 86.
Pronoun, Interrogative, XCII, et seq., 75, et seq.
Pronoun to be repeated in answer, CKXXIX,
93.
Reflective Pronoun, XCI, 74.
Relationship, terms for, Peculiar
XXVII, 42.
Relatives, XCIX, 78.
Rendering of Relatives and Interrogatives,
CVIII, 80.
use of,
INDEX.
153
S
Self, CX-et seg., 82 et seq.
Self immediately follows Personal Pronoun,
CXII, Note, 83.
Sense shews Gender, XIX, 39.
Sentences, Interrogative, CKXXVI-CXLI, gr-
93-
Sentence same in Interrogative as in
Affirmative, CKXXVI, No. 4, Note, 92.
SSh5ng， 上 ， Uses of, CLXI, 102.
Short month, LXXXI, 70.
Sign of Plural, VI, 37.
Singular and Plural, No difference between,
III, 36.
(Sin Shang. 先生 ， Use of, XXVIII, 43.
Sit, to, Preposition with} CCXI, 117.
“sié-pan’, yy a, XXXL, 44.
Subject always precedes Verb, CLII, 96.
Subject, Position of, CLII, 96.
Subjunctive, Conjunction in, often understood,
CXVIII, 84.
Subjunctive Mood, CXXIX, go.
Superior named before Inferior,
Remark, 41.
Superlative formed with chi’, 至 ， LXVI, 64.
XXIII,
Superlative formed with kik,, ft , LXVI, 64.
Superlative formed with shéng?, 下; LXVI,
64.
Superlative formed with ‘ting, TA, LXVI, 64.
Superlative of Adjectives, LXVI ef seq., 64 et seq.
Surnames precede other names, XXX, 44.
“sz, 4%; Uses of, CLXV, 105.
(Sz nai, bit Wh, XXVIII, Note, 43.
‘rg, FJ, Idiomatic uses of, CLVIL, 97.
Tai®-pan’, 大 SE, XXXI, 44.
é 2 4B ae
Tak, tsai~, t# 路 ， follows Adjective,
CLXXXVII, 112.
“Tang, 等 ， IX, Note, 37.
Tei2， rH, sign of Plural, VI, 37.
Ten understood, LXX, Note, 66-67.
Tenses, CXV, CXXII et seq., 83, 86 eof seq.
Than with a Comparative, LXVII, 65.
Time, Ambiguity regarding, LXXI, 67.
Time, Phrases denoting, LXXII, 68.
Titles come after name, XXIX, 43.
To, CXCVI, 114.
Ta， #4, Position of CLXXXIV, 112.
x? :
To", Bj, Use of CCX, 128.
Tones of Personal Pronoun, LXXXVII, Note
2, 73.
“Tsai, fF, in combination, XXIV, 41.
“Tsai, 仔 ， used as diminutive, XXIV, Note,
42.
ST'so*, Idiomatic uses of, CLXIV, 104-105.
clung, fal, Use of, CCX, 117.
Vv
Verbs, Impersonal forms of, CKXX-CXXXII,
go.
Verbs left out, CLI, 96.
Verbs used in combination, CXV, 83.
Voice, Active, CXIII, CXXVIII, 83, 89.
Voice, Passive, CXXXIII, gr.
WwW
Well; Very well, CKLVI, 94.
When Nouns are rendered Masculine, or
Feminine, XIX, 39.
Words denoting relationship placed after name,
XXVIL, 42.
Y
Yat), —, used instead of Article, XXXIII,"4q.
5
Yau, 有 有， Idiomatic uses of, CLXVII,
CLXVIII, 106,
cYe， RR, applied to males, XXIII, Note, qr.
Yes, CXLV, 94.
Younger named first, XXIII, Remark, 41.
ates
Wy set ae. 有 353 kot Beet hte Aries hd dae eS ites
ADVERTISEMENTS. 155
WORKS BY THE SAME AUTHOR.
CANTONESE MADE EASY:
A Book of Simple Sentences in the Cantonese Dialect with Free and Literal
Translations, and Directions for the Rendering of English
Grammatical Forms into Chinese
BY
J. DYER BALL, m.r.ass., etc,
OF HIS MAJESTY'S CIVIL SERVICE, HONGKONG.
This Book has been Introduced into the
Hongkong Givil Service Examination Scheme.
Extracts from Notices of the above Work.
Mr. Ball has conferred a great boon on all beginners in Cantenese
Colloquial. The good books on the subject are scarce and out of print; the
books that do exist are compilations of pretentious rubbish, full of English
idioms repeated ad nauseam. . . . «. . « « « « ‘We most cordially
recommend it. . . . It gives the tones, the pronunciation according to
Sir William Jones’s system, and the Chinese characters. . . . . It is
worthy of Mr. Ball’s reputation as a ‘master of Cantonese Colloquial.’—
China Review, Vol. X1., p. 258.
Will . . . supply a want long felt by students of Cantonese. In
the excellently worded explanatory preface very great stress is laid upon the
acquisition of correct tones. . . . . After these remarks on tones
a few lines are devoted to the grammar of the Chinese language; then
follows an explanation of the final particles, or finals, the remarks on the
use of which appear to. be very sensible. . . . . The preface is
followed by an introduction . . . . containing exercises in tones and
I50 ADVERTISEMENTS.
a lengthy syllabary, or directions for pronouncing Chinese sounds when
represented by Roman letters. Then follow the numerals and a series
of useful dialogues. . . . . In these dialogues a literal as well as
free translation of the Chinese sentences is given. . . . . After the
sentences comes a list of classifiers. . . . . Following the list of
classifiers comes some original and really admirable work in the shape
of cleverly written and exhaustive directions for rendering English gram-
matical forms into Chinese. . . . . We now come to the list of
finals, or final particles, to the use of which the writer has evidently given
very great attention, and we do not remember having previously seen
anything like so exhaustive a list, or such sensible directions for the use
of these finals. This is followed up by some final directions, and directions
for the guidance of the beginner. . . . . Inconclusion we may say
that Mr. Ball’s work, being the only one worth a second glance which is
procurable, we strongly recommend it to students, not only beginners, but
even somewhat advanced students, of Cantonese Colloquial.—Datly Press,
7th September, 1883.
We say without hesitation that his work far surpasses that of Dennys,
for example, in the matter of idiom, and that his command of words and _his
perception of delicate shades of meaning are much above the average of
European attainment in Canton Colloquial. In these respects the volume
before us makes a valuable addition to the existing aids to beginners ; and
ae be found useful to some of the ‘more venerable and learned Sinologists.’
. Mr. Ball’s “Notes on classifiers and grammar will be found
very valuable.-—China Mail, 10th September, 1883.
In the work now before us, compiled and edited by Mr. J. Dyer Ball,
M.R.A.S., etc., who, from his long experience amongst the Cantonese and
from his long study of their language, is eminently fitted for the task which
he has imposed upon himself, we find an almost unlimited variety in a
comparatively small compass— . . . wherewith the beginner may be
guided. . . . . Mr. Ball has endeavoured to give such expressive
volubility to his work as far as his studies, learning, researches and long
experience in China have enabled him to do. . . . . Of the work
itself, taken as a whole, we can say that it isa most admirable compilation.
For an advanced sinologue there are very many valuable hints
given. . . . . We approve . . of Mr. Ball’s basis of arrange-
ment in the fifteen lessons, and really commend the book for an advanced.
student to whom the work will prove in a number of ways a valuable addition
towards the tending of the improvement in his mode of construing Chinese
phrases and sentences in the Cantonese. . . . The work is got up in
a neat form and is well ptinted.—Honghong Telegraph, 12th September; 1883.
2
ADVERTISEMENTS. 157
There will doubtless be many cadets, missionary students, and
philologists turning their thoughts towards the East, : .. . Iam glad to
be able to call the attention of such enquirers to a . . work, by Mr.
J. Dyer Ball, . . . . . Cantonese Made Easy. The dialect of Canton
is the most important of South China; and as it contains fewer provin-
cialisms than almost any other Chinese dialect, and employs the classical
characters . . in writing, the knowledge of this sub-language, so to
speak, is indispensable to any one who intends taking a position in the East.
Mr. J. Dyer Ball has rendered good service in his timely publication. Born
in China, of European parentage, favoured with exceptional advantages for
the acquisition of the dialects of China, having a natural gift for this
particular work, and being employed in Her Majesty’s Civil Service .
he has had every opportunity to gain an accurate knowledge of Cantonese.
The difficult questions relating to tones, classifiers, finals, etc., are
treated with a masterly hand.—Academy, 12th January, 1884.
For the sake of your readers in Oxford and elsewhere who may
be studying philology, or preparing for cadetships and civil service in the
East I callattention to . . . Cantonese Made Easy . . . prepared by
Mr. J. Dyer Ball, M.r.ass. . . . . Mr. Ball was born in China, and
speaks the language like a native. He has spent his life chiefly in the East,
and I can add my testimony to that of numerous reviewers respecting
the excellency of his book.—Bunbury Guardian, 1oth January, 1884.
EXTRACTS FROM NOTICES IN THE PRESS
ON THE
SHCOND HDITION
OF
‘CANTONESE MADE EASY?’
Mr. Dyer Ball’s eminently useful work, ‘Cantonese Made Easy.’
The new edition has been considerably enlarged. . . . The
entire book has .been carefully revised, and numerous improvements and
alterations suggested by experience and afterthought have been effected.
The work as it stands affords an admirable means to the learner of acquiring
a good knowledge of Cantonese Colloquial, and now that the task has been
so much simplified by Mr. Ball’s patient and laborious efforts, it is to be
hoped a much larger number of those who intend to make their career here
158 ADVERTISEMENTS.
will apply themselves to the study of the vernacular, a knowledge of which,
in every department of business, is of great advantage to the possessor.—
Hongkong Daily Press, tgth January, 1888.
Mr. Ball has evidently expended a vast deal of studious care, in con-
nection with this compilation, and as a result has placed before students of
Chinese, especially beginners, an instruction book that is simply invaluable.
The appendix contains some interesting particulars regarding Chinese
grammar.—Honghong 1elegraph, 18th January, 1888.
The work has been greatly enlarged, and it is now by far the most
reliable introduction to the study of Cantonese that has yet been publishéd.
The principal enlargement is in the Grammatical portion of the book. The
classifiers have been rearranged into two tables, one giving the words to
which this name strictly applies, and the other the words which have a some-
what similar use, but are not entitled to the name; while a better table of
the Personal Pronouns has been drawn up, and important additions made to
the idiomatic uses of verbs. The introductory part of the work has also
been greatly enlarged. Mr. Ball . . . has recast and largely extended
the tonic exercises. . . . To this introductory part there have also been
added very useful exercises on long and short vowels and aspirated words.
The sentence lessons have not been greatly enlarged, but several important
improvements have been made. . . . At the end of the book there isa
useful index to the grammatical part. This work of Mr. Ball’s supplies a
great need, and we have no doubt it will find its way into the hands of all
learners of Cantonese.—China Mail, 18th January, 1888.
The present revised and enlarged issue certainly leaves little to be
desired . . . . Mr. Ball does not fail to acknowledge the assistance he
has received from Dr, Chalmers, Mr. J. Stewart-Lockhart, and others who
have endeavoured to contribute their mite towards the perfection of this
important dialect, and it seems only fair to him to admit that he has
succeeded in extracting the utmost net result of their contributions, and has
produced as precise and critical a manual as it is reasonably possible to
expect. The leading feature in Mr. Ball’s work is the conscientious exactitude
with which he handles the knotty subject of tones. In the main, his
chapters on this subject may be considered unexceptionable. . . . ‘
Another strong point in Mr. Ball’s new book is his list of final aupletude,
Mr. Ball’s changes of spelling are undoubtedly improvements in
the majority of cases. . . . The tone exercises are excellent, and the
student will notice many cases—e.g., chd-kd-yi—where the tone is both
radically changed and then specially modified in some particular senses.
Mr. Ball rightly insists on the important distinction between the long and
ADVERTISEMENTS. 159
short vowels. . . . His separation of Williams's sd, thirty, into sd-—d is
very judicious, and undoubtedly correct. . . . Thelessons are admirable,
and great pains have been taken to mark distinctions. . . . Mr. Ball
wisely avoids all bookish expressions. . . . Mr. Ball’s rules and
exhortations are much to the point; and, if students endeavour to profit by
the vast experience he has gained, they cannot fail to reap a proportionate
reward. . . The work deserves very high praise, is clearly and neatly
printed, and, considering the enormous number of tone marks used, betrays
very little trace of inaccuracy. . . . Mr. Ball is probably the most facile
of educated European speakers of Cantonese; and this being so, the novelties
which he introduces can be accepted with complete trust ; and they convey
moreover a graceful compliment to those who have previously ventured to
hint at what Mr. Ball has now, speaking ex cathedrd, pronounced to be
undoubted facts.— China Review, 1888.
The work is the most reliable introduction to the study of Cantonese we
have met with. . . The . . . . sentences . . areall well chosen,
and the grammatical part also contains many good phrases. . . . . The
prominence attached to aspirated and non-aspirated words, to long and short
vowels, and to correct pronounciation in general, shows Mr. Ball’s great
carefulness and mastery over the spoken language. . . . All the phrases
given are in idiomatic and concise language. . . . We think Mr. Ball
quite right in selecting the most perfect form available for his standard.—
Chinese Recovder and Missionary Journal, April, 1888.
EXTRACTS FROM NOTICES IN THE PRESS
OF
‘HOW TO SPEAK CANTONESE.’
In commenting on the second edition of his ‘Cantonese Made
Easy,’ we pointed out that although that work treated in a more compre-
hensive manner than had hitherto been attempted the tones, expletives,
pronunciation and grammatical structure of Cantonese, it was deficient in
lessons illustrative of the use of the language in everyday life. Mr. Ball has
now made good that defect by his new work, which contains fifty ‘conver-
gations,’ eminently practical, covering almost all the forms of expression
and almost all the vocabulary for ordinary conversations in Cantonese. The
author has succeeded in giving these conversations a life-like form, making
them as near as possible what one would naturally expect to form the subject
matter of conversation. Mr. Ball has perhaps mastered the Cantonese
160 ADVERTISEMENTS.
dialect better than any foreigner has yet done; and his daily practice .
has given him a power of setting forth the great difference between the
structure of English and Chinese in a more lucid manner than has yet been
attained. It is not an Anglified Cantonese that he endeavours to make his
readers conversant with, but the real idiom of Canton. We have no hesita-
tion in saying that Mr. Ball’s two works ‘Cantonese Made Easy’ and ‘How
to Speak Cantonese’ form as concise and complete a manual of the dialect as
it is nigh possible to expect. There are really no other works on the subject
worthy of comparison with them.—China Mail, 28th February, 1889.
Hongkong is about the only English Colony where the invaders never
seem to take kindly to the native language. Fy-ti and mdn-mdn constitute
the vocabulary of most residents not Hongkong-born, eked out by the
ridiculous pidgin-English. With regard to this latter means of communica-
tion it has often struck us as curious that no attempt is made to improve the
ungrammatical, childish terms out of it, and give the Chinese a chance of
speaking good English, as they do in the Straits Settlements. There
pidgin-English would be laughed at by any Chinaman who knew any
English, and yet we here go on perpetuating the idiotic ‘This no blong
ploppa’ style of conversation. Even a slight acquaintance with Chinese
would be preferable to this, and there is very little excuse nowadays for not
possessing that, for every five-and- -twenty minutes some handy and most
carefully explicit handbook on the subject is issued by Mr. J. Dyer Ball.
His latest production is a companion volume to ‘Cantonese Made Easy,’
and is entitled ‘ How to speak Cantonese.’ In the former work a copious
list of those most necessary perplexities, classifiers, are given, together with
short lessons in composition and a few pages of short sentences. The latter
production is even more useful. It contains fifty ‘ conversations’ on ordinary
topics, covering most of the ground of everyday business. Mr. Dyer Ball is
too old a teacher of the public to waste time on such fraudulent sentences as
‘ The gardener’s son gave the neighbour's daughter a flower,’ like the old
First French Courses did; his system is more practical. On one page he
gives the English eesiedes: with its translation in Chinese type, and on
the opposite leaf, the sound of the Chinese words, with marks of intonation
for those who care to speak correctly, and, fourthly, a word-for-word
retranslation of the translation, showing the idioms and quaint construction
of the sentences in Chinese.—-Honghong Telegraph, 1st March, 1889.
Asa. . collection of sentences, we have no hesitation in saying
that this book is without rival. . . . We heartily recommend it to all
earnest students of Cantonese; and . . . it will prove of use even to old
hands.—Hongkong Daily Press, 19th March, 1889.
ADVERTISEMENTS. 161
Mr. Ball’s latest, and perhaps his best attempt to popularize the
study of Cantonese. We have gone through it very carefully from its first
pages to its last . . The matter . . is simply excellent throughout
: Here we have a . . collection of sentences extensive and
highly valuable . . . and which must prove of the greatest assistance
to the colloquial student. . . . . . . . . The conversations, more
especially those in the latter sections of the book, are of the most useful
character, the idioms are well chosen, the vocabulary is extensive and, with
one or two exceptions, the foot notes appended throughout are of great
value and such as could only be given by one whose knowledge of the
subject was of very thorough and intricate description. We note that Mr.
Ball peruses the local native Press; the great number of the newest and
latest approved expressions for naval, military, and scientific technicalities
shows this plainly.
‘HOW TO SPEAK CANTONESE:
Second Edition.
Fifty conversations in Cantonese Colloquial, with the Chinese Character.
Free and Literal English Translations, and Romanised Spelling with Tonic
and Diacritical Marks, etc. Second Edition. Revised and Corrected. By
J. Dyer Ball; m.R.a.s., etc., of His Majesty’s Civil Service, Hongkong.
Hongkong: Messrs. Kelly & Walsh, 1902.
We find at the end of this volume a collection of Press notices, so
laudatory of Mr. Ball’s books in the Canton dialect that to further extol the
new edition of ‘ How to Speak Cantonese’ might appear like an attempt at
painting the lily or gilding the refined gold. The merits of the work before
us were recognised in the earlier edition; the value it then had is enhanced
by the author’s revision. Mr. Ballis, we observe, among the Reformers of
Romanization and diacritical marking in Cantonese colloquial.
Of greater consequence to the student is the tone marking. This, in our
opinion, should be one of the main criteria for determining the value of books
of instruction in Cantonese. In this respect the latest edition of Mr. Ball's
work is beyond praise. We have the more pleasure in thus writing
inasmuch as accuracy of tone marking can only be secured by intelligent and
painstaking effort on the part of proof readers.
As to the subjects of the fifty Conservations, these are, we think,
sufficiently varied to afford the basis of a useful vocabulary in Cantonese.
In regard to the modes of speech, it should be pointed out that a sound use
of the book will be, for the beginner to take its typical sentence models as a
guide to construction in the vernacular of which it treats.
162 ADVERTISEMENTS,
It seems to us that the time has come when the question ‘ How to
speak Cantonese’ may well exercise the minds of a larger number of non-
Chinese residents in the south of the Empire. We believe that the new
time in China will be fraught with opportunities for the Cantonese-speaking
Chinese. At the present time, they are to be found in hundreds and
thousands at the chief industrial and commercial centres in the central and
northern provinces. The opening-up of China will mean greater scope for
Cantonese enterprise, energy, foresight and capacity. The foreigner who
has learned how to speak Cantonese is likely to find his acquisition of service
in many directions. If, as we think, the dialect is destined to rule largely in
the commercial life of the near future this consideration should lead to the
timely and wide use of the book just issued.
‘THE CANTONESE-MADE-EASY VOCABULARY.’
A Small Dictionary in English and Cantonese, containing only Words
and Phrases used in the Spoken Language, with Classifiers indicated for
each Noun, and Definitions of the Different Shades of Meaning, as well as
Notes on the Different uses of Words where ambiguity might otherwise arise.
The work should be very useful to students of the Cantonese Dialect ,一
China Mail, 26th July, 1886.
Mr. J. Dyer Ball, author of ‘Easy Sentences in the Hakka Dialect,’
‘ Cantonese-Made-Easy,’ etc., has just issued a companion work to these
useful publications to students of Chinese. . . . The words and phrases
appear to have been most carefully collected and arranged, and we doubt
not that this little dictionary will adequately fulfil the aims of the compiler,.—
Hongkong Telegraph, 27th July, 1886.
Giving an exhaustive list of different shades of the English meaning, to
save the beginner from falling into mistakes to which he would otherwise be
liable. The vocabulary seems to have been most carefully compiled, and it
cannot fail to prove most useful to students, especially beginners.—Hongkong
Daily Press, 29th July, 1886.
We have here a very neatly got up vocabulary of the most common terms
which a beginner is likely to stand in need of. . . , "The rendering of
the terms selected appears to be given in good idiomatic colloquial style.
As the author gives, for the English words selected by him, the corres-
ponding Chinese characters, together with their pronunciation and tones,
the little book is sure to prove useful.—China Review, July and August, 1886.
ADVERTISEMENTS. 163
This book will prove useful to persons desirous of learning the Cantonese
dialect— Chinese Recovdey and Missionary Journal, November, 1886.
Everything possible is being done to lighten the labours of merchants,
cadets, missionaries, and students, in their study of that difficult language,
the Chinese. . . . . . Mr. Ball is one of the most accomplished
linguists in Hongkong, . . . . andnomore able pen could be found
for the work of simplifying and popularizing the Chinese tongue.
There are many people in England as well as abroad to whom Mr. Ball’s
work will bea boon. It gives first the English words in alphabetical order, then
the Chinese equivalents, and finally a transliteration of the Chinese words,
so that those who do not understand the characters may still be able to tell
at a glance what is the Cantonese equivalent of the word before them. Thus
the word Any is stated to be an adj. and adv., then follows the Chinese word,
and finally its pronunciation mat, so that mat is the Chinese equivalent of
any; yan stands for man, kit is the verb fo call, and soon. Numerous notes
are added where there is any danger of the learner being misled by the
ambiguity of terms, and altogether the book is a capital vade-mecum for the
young student.—Retford and Gainsborough Times, Worksop and Newavk Weekly
News, 24th December, 1886.
While dealing with China it will not be out of place to mention another
work for which future learners of that curious language will be grateful.
This is ‘The Cantonese-Made-Easy Vocabulary’ by J. Dyer Ball, m.r.a.s.,
of H. M. Civil Service, Hongkong. The author is one of the best foreign
speakers of Chinese we have ever had the good fortune to meet. Born and
brought up in the East, he can converse as readily in Cantonese as in English,
and is consequently a most reliable authority on such critical points
as Tone and Classifiers, which are the bugbears of every beginner in Chinese.
The volume will also be valuable to the philologist, even though he may know
little or nothing of the Celestial tongue, since every Chinese character is
represented by the equivalent sound in English letters.—English paper.
Thesecondedition . . . will provea useful vade-mecum for students.
After a careful perusal of it one is struck by its accuracy both as regards
the markings of jpnes, the romanizing of sounds, and the meanings of the
various words and phrases. With respect to tones, Mr. Ball has carefully
distinguished between the ordinary tones and the ‘changing’ or colloquial
tones, . . . which must be observed in speaking by those who wish to
speak Cantonese and not a pidgin-Cantonese, or jargon passing muster for
the lingua pura of the city of Canton.
164 ADVERTISEMENTS.
‘AN ENGLISH-CANTONESE POCKET
VOCABULARY ’
BY
J. DYER BALL, M.R.AS., Etc.
Notices By THE Press.
It is meant . . forthe useof strangers, tourists, or even residents,
who, from want of time, are unable to master the intricacies of the language,
but who, at the same time, feel a desire to pick up a few words, so as not to
be in the position of deaf mutes when entirely surrounded by natives. Those
who have any knowledge of the subject will readily appreciate Mr. Ball’s
object in compiling this limited vocabulary, the want for which has been felt,
we might say, ever since the Colony was founded. To say the least of them,
tonic marks are decidedly confusing unless they are seriously studied, and
their entire absence from this vocabulary will alone prove a recommendation.
Mr. Ball’s book makes no pretensions to oust those vocabularies which are
already in existence; it merely makes an attempt to supply a demand hitherto
unprovided for. . . . . . . It is sufficiently copious to enable
any one to make himself, or herself, understood in the ordinary transactions
of everyday life; and it is just possible that it may awaken a desire in some
persons to know more of the language. Mr. Ball has very wisely issued the
book at a low price, 75 cents a copy, and its merit and cheapness should
ensure an extensive sale.—China Mail, 22nd September, 1886.
Mr. J. Dyer Ball's ‘ English-Cantonese Pocket Vocabulary’ is quite a
novelty in its way, and is the first publication we have seen in which some
knowledge of Chinese is rendered possible without the use of Chinese
characters. The sounds of the Chinese words in this little work are
represented by English spelling, in exactly the same fashion adopted in
many rudimentary treatises on the French and other foreign languages.
The plan adopted by Mr. Dyer Ball is very simple, and we think
an effective one. He wished to provide a method by which travellers and
others, who may not consider the acquisition of Cantonese a game worth the
candle, without any very serious study, can acquire a sufficient acquaintance
with the vernacular to be understood if unhappily isolated amongst non-
English speaking Chinese. Mr. Ball has done his work in his customary
careful and painstaking fashion, and we imagine this little book will command
a ready sale.—Hongkong Telegraph, 23rd September, 1886.
ADVERTISEMENTS. 165
We have received a copy of another of those useful aids to the acquisition
of the Chinese colloquial for which Mr. Dyer Ball is becoming noted. This
last work is entitled ‘An English-Cantonese Pocket Vocabulary.’ It contains
common words and phrases, printed without the Chinese characters or tonic
marks, and the sounds of the Chinese words are represented by an English
spelling, as far as practicable, while the author in his preface gives some very
simple directions how to overcome the difficulties of pronunciation. The
little book is not intended for those who intend to make a serious study of
Chinese; it is intended to enable the English resident or tourist to pick up a
sufficient vocabulary to make known his wishes or wants to the natives, and
to understand something of what is going on around him when surrounded
by Chinese. . . . The pamphlet will supply a want and its study is likely
to lead to further exploration in the same direction.—Honghong Daily Press,
24th September, 1886.
The pamphlet is published for the benefit of tourists or residents who
have no time to master the intricacies of the Cantonese dialect and who are
deterred from the task when they take up other books on the subject bristling
with tonic and other diacritical marks. Mr. Ball labours therefore here, as
in his other pamphlets, to make an intrinsically difficult subject easy. We
think the book has its merits by its extreme simplicity and by the judicious
selection of a stock of the most ordinary and popular words and phrases. The
spelling . . . . may prove handy enough for the purposes stated.—China
Review, November and December, 1886.
NOTICE OF THE PRESS
‘READINGS IN CANTONESE COLLOQUIAL’
‘Readings from Cantonese Colloquial’ is . . . from the pen of that
industrious and capable writer Mr. J. Dyer Ball, the author of ‘Things
Chinese.” The . . book consists of selections from publications in the
Cantonese vernacular, with free and literal translations of the Chinese
character and Romanized spelling. . . . Will be a valuable addition to
the student’s library.— China Mail, 14th August, 1894.
I60 ADVERTISEMENTS，
‘EASY SENTENCES IN THE HAKKA DIALECT’
WITH A VOCABULARY.
Price: One Dollar.
Extracts FROM NoTICES OF THE ABOVE WorK.
It is, for the most part, as the author says in the introduction, an
adaptation of Giles’s ‘Handbook of the Swatow Dialect’ and will prove as
useful to those entering on the study of Hakka as Mr. Giles’s book has proved
in the case of the dialect spoken at Swatow. An extensive vocabulary is
appended.—Daily Press, 28th October, 1881.
Unlike most books of the kind, there are no Chinese characters given for
the ‘Easy Sentences,’ the collection of phrases being Romanized Phoneti-
cally so as to give to the beginner the equivalent sounds in Chinese. The
sentences given appear to be well arranged, and cover as much ground as is
ever likely to be required by those desirous of attaining to a rough colloquial
knowledge of Hakka. Mr. Ball frankly tells all others to go to a teacher,
and indeed he strongly advises even the learner to go hand in hand with the
teacher in his uphill work from the very beginning.—China Mail, 22nd
October, 1881.
A very handylittle volume. . . . Usefulpamphlet . . . Chinese
is admittedly a difficult study to Europeans, but, as Mr. Ball states, there is
no reason why with a little trouble, they should not pick up sufficient con-
versational knowledge so as to be able to understand what goes on about
them as well as to make themselves understood. For this purpose Mr. Ball's
compilation will answer every requirement. The sentences are judiciously
arranged, and the method of conveying a correct method of pronunciation is
apparently very clear and simple. The book is very well printed, and, as it
is published at a very low price, will no doubt obtain an extensive circula-
tion.— Hongkong Telegraph, 22nd October, 1881.
‘Easy Sentences in the Hakka Dialect, witha Vocabulary.’ Translated
by J. Dyer Ball, Hongkong, 1881. This title indicates the character of the
book. It contains 57 pages and fourteen chapters besides the vocabulary.
The subjects of the chapters are designated thus:—Lesson I, Domestic.
II to V, General. VI, Relationship. VII, Opposites. VIII, Monetary.
IX and X, Commercial. XI, Medical. XII, Ecclesiastical. XIII, Nautical.
XIV, Judicial. It thus contains a wide range of subjects. We cordially
recommend it to all students of the Hakka Dialect.—Chinese Recovdey and
Missionary Journal, November-December, 1881.
ADVERTISEMENTS， I67
NOTICES OF THE PRESS
ON
‘HOW TO WRITE THE RADICALS.’
‘Mr. J. Dyer Ball has given another proof of his untiring energy in the
field of Chinese language and literature in the tiny volume just published
under the title of ‘ How to write the Radicals.’ A glance at the pages of
the work is sufficient to reveal the progressive method which the author has
adopted. Radicals formed by one stroke of the pen constitute the initiatory
chapter of the work, and are followed by successive methods of writing
radicals up to those formed of fifteen strokes. An Excursus on the practical
use of the Chinese Dictionary completes the work. We recommend it to
the perusal of all students of the language of the Flowery Land.—Hongkong
Telegraph, 13th October, 1888.
In the pamphlet just issued he simply gives the Radicals with their
pronunciation in Mandarin and Cantonese, and a dissection of each character
into its component strokes, showing the order in which they,are written or
joined together. Thus, all the strokes of the 17-stroke radical, are laid
out one by one in the order they are written. The work should not only
enable the learner to count with considerable facility the number of strokes
of which a character is composed, but aid him to pick out the Radical
component of any given character. At the end of the work are several
practical hints for the use of a Chinese dictionary.—China \Jaztl, 13th October,
1888.
We should say it would be found more or less useful to students at
home—for Chinese is now to be found among the subjects required by
several examining bodies there—also to missionaries and others who were
coming out to China with the intention of learning Chinese, and who might
easily get up the radicals and their meanings en vowle. . . . . The
radicals are the nearest Chinese equivalent to our Western alphabets.
They are 214 in number, beginning with those formed with one stroke of the
pen, and end witha character formed with 17 strokes. In the little work
under notice, each radical is carefully analysed; and once these analyses
nave been thoroughly mastered, the student cannot possible fail to write the
radicals correctly. . . . . The publishers, Messrs. Kelly & Walsh, Ld.,
have done their part of the work carefully and well; the paper is excellent,
and the type clear and distinct.—Datly Press, 20th October, 1888.
168 ADVERTISEMENTS.
This is a useful little book to beginners in Chinese, whether their object
of study be local patois or the mandarin. The work is professedly an
abridgment of Mr. Dyer Ball’s larger work ‘ How to write Chinese.’ It is
none the less, or rather, all the more useful on this account. The 214
radicals contain most, if not all, of the combinations which make up the
Chinese characters, and the student who has well learned the structure of
the radicals will find no difficulty in writing any character, however com-
plicated. It is not that any special virtue attaches to the radicals as such,
but that it so happens in developing them the same rules were followed as
in the more phonetic portions of the compound character. The student who
first commences the study of Chinese under a teacher will probably rebel at
the manner in which he is taught to form the strokes, and, asthe teacher
most probably can give him no explanation, he will get an incorrect idea of
form, and attribute the teacher’s method as springing simply from the
perversity of the race generally. Indeed, as a rule, the character is written
just the contrary from what a European would anticipate, and it is often a
good rule when in doubt to think what would seem most natural and do—the
reverse. Mr. Dyer Ball’s book if carefully perused will show the attentive
student that there is not only method but reason in the native way of
writing, and this we take it will be a grateful revelation to the student of this
book.— Shanghai Mercury.
We have received from Messrs. Kelly & Walsh, Limited, a copy of a
most useful pamphlet of 40 pages, with a 7 page excursus, by Mr. J. Dyer
Ball, M.R.A.S., etc., of Her Majesty’s Civil Service, Hongkong, ‘How to
write the Radicals.’ They are an irritating institution, these Radicals; toa
certain extent they are the alphabet of the Chinese written language, and
yet, while they are the bricks out of which the characters are constructed,
the learner must have a very full knowledge of the language before he can
be certain which brick was laid first when the character was built up; and
to use a Chinese dictionary intelligently, he must know this. On this head
the reader will find Mr. Ball’s excursus of great value. The body of the
pamphlet gives the Radicals in order, with their pronunciation in Mandarin
and Cantonese, and their analysis into the separate strokes of which they
are composed, and the order in which these strokes are made; knowledge
indispensable in itself and which cannot be better acquired than through
this little book, . . . It is printed by Kelly & Walsh, Limited,
Hongkong, and the typography and general appearance leave nothing to be
desired—North-China Daily News.
ADVERTISEMENTS. 169
‘HOW TO WRITE CHINESE, PART I.
This work is intended for students of Chinese who wish to render
themselves perfect in the art of writing. It contains instructions in the
method of holding the pencil, the various forms of strokes, the reason of the
positions, etc., and generally is a useful book to refer to on the moment.
If the student wish to have a general view of the construction
of the characters, Mr. Ball’s introduction read carefully over . . .
will, we take it, be sufficient to instruct the student in the formation with
a European pen of the characters neatly and legibly.—Shanghai Mercury.
In addition to setting forth the component strokes of each Radical,
Mr. Ball in this new work gives extensive directions and remarks with regard
to how the various strokes, hooks, ‘sweeps,’ etc., should be written. The
work contains, besides, a pretty long introduction, giving general informa-
tion with regard to the writing of Chinese characters. A good deal perhaps
of Mr. Ball’s directions may be found scattered through other works,
but we believe his work is the most systematic attempt, at least of a popular
kind, that has been made to resolve the Chinese characters into their
elemental parts and to set forth the mode in which these characters are built
up. Everyone who has experienced the enormous difficulty of mastering
the ideographic language of China will owe a debt of gratitude to Mr. Ball.—
China Mail, 22nd November, 1888.
The untiring energy displayed by Mr. Dyer Ball in his praiseworthy
endeavours to simplify the difficult study of Chinese is little short of
marvellous. It is scarcely a month ago since we criticized a little work of
his ‘How to Write the Radicals,’ and here he is again before our notice with
the first part of a work entitled ‘How to Write Chinese ;’ and what is more,
he will again present himself before very long, as we are told he has two
other works nearly ready for the public, one of them actually being in the
Press, and the other in a forward and active state of preparation.
The book with which we are now concerned is an amplification of ‘How
to Write the Radicals.’ . . . . Anintroduction of twenty-five closely-
packed pages contains a lot of general remarks addressed to the beginner
on Chinese writing in general, and on the difference between native pen and
paper and similar clerical articles in use in the West. The proper way of
manipulating the Chinese pen is also described and illustrated by a
wood-cut taken from Dr. Williams’s ‘Easy Lessons in Chinese.’ Then comesa
detailed analysis of the eight elementary strokes into which all Chinese charac-
ters, however complicated, can be ultimately resolved; the bulk of the remarks
here are taken from Dr. Bridgman’s ‘Chinese Chrestomathy in the Canton
Dialect.’ This is followed by a series of terse practical rules for forming the
170 ADVERTISEMENTS.
different varieties of strokes according to the position in which they occur; and
it ishere that Mr. Ball shows himself at his very best; no better, more careful,
or more thorough advice could possibly be offered, and supplemented by the
always necessary aid of an efficient teacher, the learner must, in spite of
himself, make rapid progress in his penmanship if he follows out the excel-
lent rules laid down at this particular point for his guidance. The main
body of the book, the Radicals themselves, are far more completely and
exhaustively treated in this than in the previous work. Each Radical has
its pronunciation given in the Peking, Canton, Hakka, Swatow, Foochow,
Amoy, and Hankow dialects, the authorities quoted in each instance being
a sufficiently reliable guarantee of their accuracy; the English meaning is
then given; this is followed by the individual strokes put in the order in
which they occur when the character is written; this is succeeded again by
general directions and remarks as to the pressure to be exerted on the pen
at different parts of the stroke: the whole forming a series of notes, so to
speak, which must be simply invaluable to the tyro. Mr. Ball’s treatment
is at once effective and final, and is a model of what such work should be.
: A lucid Excursus on the method of using a Chinese Dictionary is
appended. The book is concluded by an admirable set of three alphabetical
indexes of the Radicals. . . . . A number of Chinese copy-slips as
specimens are bound up with the work.
We sincerely wish that this latest venture of Mr. Ball’s may meet with
the success it deserves, and thereby give him the encouragement he requires
to bring out the second part at an early date.—Daily Press, 27th November,
1888.
Neatly got up, and the author, well known as an excellent speaker of
the Cantonese dialect, has evidently bestowed much time and labour on his
subject of teaching foreigners how to write the Chinese radicals.
There is in the author’s introduction a good deal of useful and interesting
instruction on penmanship in general such as a native teacher might over-
look.—China Review, September-October, 1888.
We noticed a few days ago Mr. Dyer Ball’s pamphlet, ‘How to Write
the Radicals’ which was an excerpt from the brochure now before us. The
Chinese attach so much importance to caligraphy, that the foreigner who
wishes to be a Chinese scholar must learn not only how to make the
characters, but how to make them in the proper order. . . . . Mr.
Dyer Ball has performed his task very carefully and completely. His book
contains full descriptions of the paper used by the Chinese and the pens,
and taken from Dr. Williams —are as full as could possibly be wished. How
full the directions are may be judged from the fact that the Single Dot takes
ADVERTISEMENTS. I71I
nearly a page, and Hooks and Hooked Lines two pages. After these prelimi-
nary instructions, come the full directions how to write the Radicals, with
illustrations and remarks under each radical which are omitted in the smaller
book. The excursus in the latter pamphlet is also here, and three useful
indices are added; an alphabetical index to the radicals according to their
Mandarin pronunciation; the same according to Cantonese; and an
index to these according to their meaning in English. . .
The typography and general appearance of the book do great credit to iis
publishers.—Novth-China Daily News.
EXTRACTS FROM NOTICES IN THE PRESS
OF
é
THINGS CHINESE.’
Beinc NoTES ON Various SuBJECTS CONNECTED WITH CHINA.
By J. Dyer Batt, M.R.A.S.
The Chapters on History, Literature, Opium, Government, Infanticide,
and Dialects are good, and reflect credit upon the author. . . . Many
of Mr. Ball’s remarks are both shrewd and sensible.—/apan Maul, 1892.
This highly useful work . . . . The range of subjects is so
exhaustive, comprising as its does such far removed and independent points
of interest as China’s aboriginal tribes, Chinese amusements, modes of
punishment, clothing, Chinese classics, concubinage, botany and the fauna,
geomancy, opium smoking and its evils, Chinese etiquette, kidnapping, and
infanticide, that it almost deserves the name of an encyclopedia.
Altogether some 970 subjects receive attention. . . . . The work
contains a useful list of books on China of value alike to the general reader
and to students of the language. . . ， ~~ It is impossible to convey
an adequate idea of such a treasure-house of information within the compass
of one brief article—The Kobe Herald, gth March, 1892.
Full of just, accurate, and well-considered descriptions.—North China
Daily News, December, 1892.
There are many subjects and references in this volume which will assist
the student of China, or the inquirer into the many strange modes and
manners of a strange country and people. At every page and every turn we
meet old friends lightly or gravely dwelt on, more or less examined and
I72 ADVERTISEMENTS.
explained, and at the end we are referred to standard and other works for
further information. . . . . His aim has been to give sufficient under
each heading for the reader to form a good idea, and at the same time a fair
and just one, without, of course, in the limits placed on the size of the work,
being able to deal with each subject exhaustively. It is no mean achieve-
ment to have succeeded as he has done in this direction. Many of the subjects
treated are sufficient for long works themselves, and the boiling-down process
has had to be most carefully and judiciously done. His thirty years’ acquaint-
ance with, and study of the Chinese and their manners and customs, has
ably assisted him, and though there are many subjects on which, from his
own special knowledge, he might be tempted to be diffuse, he has restrained
the inclination. It was impossible to give all, but he has given an intelligent
account of each. We might instance such a subject as ancestral worship,
which forms so large a portion of Chinese ritual life, and could be indefinitely
drawn out; we are given all that is necessary in two pages and a half. It is,
however, almost impossible to refer much to the actual subject matter; so
many phases of Chinese life are dealt with—London & China Expvess, 11th
November, 1892.
‘Things Chinese’ is described as neither a glossary nor an encyclo-
pedia; but it partakes of both from its alphabetical arrangements.—Litevary
World, 11th November, 1892.
While containing more than a word-book it is not so full or cumbersome
as an encyclopedia.—The Publisher's Circular, 19th November, 1892.
Mr. J. Dyer Ball, by his long residence in China and his extensive
opportunities for observing and studying ‘ Things Chinese’ is well qualified
for the task of putting together such a volume as the interesting and
instructive one now before us. . . . . The value of the work will be
found to consist chiefly, we think, in its handiness and reliability as a
popular book of reference on Chinese matters. . . . . There are copious
notes on Chinese art and architecture, and on the history and national
character of the people, on their queer social customs and on a variety of
other subjects of an instructive, and entertaining character.—China Mail,
21st January, 1892.
The desire to know something of the people one lives amongst is
general, but in the case of China, to the majority, even of old residents, the
manners and customs, the beliefs and sentiments of the natives remain so
‘many conundrums. In ‘Things Chinese’ we have clear and concise
answers to many of these conundrums. . : . . Weare glad to find the
task has been speedily and creditably performed by Mr. Ball, than whom
ADVERTISEMENTS. 173
probably no one is better qualified for it. . . . The alphabetical arrange-
ment makes the volume . . particularly convenient for reference, and the
book is one that may be taken up for five minutes and opened anywhere
with a certainty of finding something interesting. In fact it crystallizes the
information obtainable on the various subjects treated of and saves the
casual inquirer troublesome research, while for the more serious student
who wishes to pursue his investigations at greater length the useful
references to authorities are supplied. The book commences with ‘ Abacus’
and ends with ‘ Zoology,’ and its usefulness is increased by a copious index.
—Hongkong Daily Press, 2nd February, 1892.
A most interesting book from the able pen of Mr. J. Dyer Ball
Gives more information on various subjects connected with China than all
the previous publications in the same direction combined
Mr. Dyer Ball’s ‘ Notes’ display an amount of research and perseverance
which speak volumes alike for the author’s industry and acumen.—Honghong
Telegvaph, 16th January, 1892.
This interesting volume . . . . will be found very useful as a work
of reference . . . foran immense volume of interesting information on
a wide range of subjects has been condensed into its . . pages. It has
evidently been compiled with great care. . . . . Many of the articles,
notably on Chinese Societies, secret and otherwise, Dialects, Porcelain and
Pottery, are admirable little essays. . . . . Mr. Ball has collected and
arranged his subjects in an order which is both new and handy and the
unpretentious volume is of real use to all people interested in China and its
people. ‘Things Chinese’ should form part of every library containing
works on the Celestial Empire.—Shanghai Mercury, 24th January, 1892.
Some of the articles, such as those headed Art, Dialects, History, Laws,
Literature, Porcelain and Pottery, Silk, Societies, Tea, Trade, etc., etc., are
valuable little treatises.—Shanghai Daily News, 1892.
NOTICES OF THE PRESS
SECOND EDITION OF ‘THINGS CHINESE.’
So much has it been appreciated . . the author has found it
necessary already to issue a second edition . . . No less than 19 new
articles have been added, the book has been increased by 78 pages, and
there is scarcely an article which has not undergone emendation and
addition to.bring it up to date.
174 ADVERTISEMENTS.
. . . . To those acquainted with Mr. Ball’s publications there is no
need to call attention to his erudition; if any evidence were needed of the
thoroughness of his knowledge of the Chinese people, their manners and
their customs, and of their relations with and influence upon those outside
the limits of their vast Empire such evidence is given in ‘ Things Chinese.’
Personal knowledge has been supplemented by information collected from all
the leading authorities on China and the Chinese. To those who wish to
obtain information without being put to the trouble of wading through a
large number of books—an important consideration in this commercial age
when the majority of people can ill afford to waste hours in verifying a
single fact—-Mr. Dyer Ball’s handbook will be simply invaluable, for the
author indicates clearly where his facts are obtained and where additional
information can be gleaned by the student. None of the new articles could
well be omitted.—-China Mail, 15th March, 1893.
Mr. Ball, who spent his early years in Hongkong, and who now
occupies an important position in the Civil Service in that colony, has had
exceptional opportunities of learning all about the Chinese, and he has
succeeded in compressing into this handy volume a vast amount of infor-
mation respecting various aspects of their life and character. . . . .On
the language and literature of China Mr. Ball can speak with authority,
and the notes under these heads especially are interesting and informing.
We must add our congratulation on the event which has produced a revised
and enlarged issue with many subjects and articles now included which had
no place in the earlier issue. Amongst these we are given some humorous
examples of English from Chinese pens, Firecrackers, the Foreigner in Far
Cathay, Po-tsz and other Games of Chance, Stamps, and Torture, to men-
tion only some of them. . . . . Enough is comprised between the covers
of the book to furnish material for many works, but the system adopted,
where any large subject is concerned, is to give sufficient to make the parti-
cular subject of intelligent interest, and to append a list of works which
more or less exhaustively treat of the matter. . . . We have nothing
but praise for the way Mr. Dyer Ball has carried out his task, and placed
before the reader a mass of information within a comparatively small
space.—London and China Express.
On the vexed question of missionary enterprise Mr. Ball writes sensibly
enough.—London Paper.
Many improvements have been effected. A large number of new
articles have been introduced, and some of the former ones have been
rewritten with excellent results.—-Honghkong Telegvaph, 25th March, 1893.
ADVERTISEMENTS. 175
To the resident and the traveller and to all interested in China, the
book is a storehouse of information on almost every conceivable subject
connected with the country and its people. The article on embroidery will
be found useful by the many collectors who take an interest in this form
of art.—Hongkong Daily Press, 27th March, 1893.
The new édition of ‘ Things Chinese’ contains a score of new sections
admirably treated of and greatly enrich a book originally opulent in its
material, candidly and carefully written. All foreign residents should secure
copies.—O Independente, 1st April, 1893.
‘THINGS CHINESE’—THIRD EDITION.
To those whose time or opportunities prevent them from dipping deep
into the customs, folklore, or classics of the Middle Kingdom, and who only
desire to acquire superficially that knowledge which it has taken the author
many years of busy and patient industry to summarize, ‘Things Chinese’
will come as a boon and blessing. It is just the sort of book which the globe
trotter, the merchant going home, or the mere passing wayfarer will—or
should—purchase and read upon his way back to the shores of Old Albion, for
although the six hundred and odd closely printed pages can scarcely be called
knowledge in a nutshell we know of no.other work which epitomizes all that
is interesting and curious in China in sucha masterly and epigrammatic
manner.—China Mail, 2nd May, 1900.
The whole work has been revised and some 150 pages have been added,
bringing the total up to 666. Nineteen new articles have been added, the
subjects being Ascending on High, Agriculture, Arms, Banks and Bank-
notes, Betrothal, “Birth (Customs connected with), Buffalo, Camphor,
Cosmetics, Cotton, Dogs, Doctors, Ginger, Ginseng, Kites, Larks and other
Songsters, Plague, Tenure of Land and Tigers. . . . . Wecan confi-
dently assert that the third edition is even better than its predecessors.—
Hongkong Daily Press, 20th April, 1900.
‘THINGS CHINESE.—FOURTH EDITION.
A very timely book.
A most admirable book on China, one of the most interesting and well-
arranged works of the kind ever written on any country. A brief descrip-
“tion of the authors method of arranging his material will help to fix an
idea of its importance in the minds of our readers, so that when asked for
the best general work on China they can unhesitatingly recommend ‘ Things
Chinese’ by Mr. J. Dyer Ball.
176 ADVERTISEMENTS.
The author divides his great subject into a series of notes arranged in
alphabetical order, each note being given an amount of space in accordance
with its importance; at the end of the more important notes the reader is
referred to the chief authorities on the subject. It is difficult to over-
estimate the value of this feature, since in one small, handy, light, and
inexpensive volume the general reader finds probably all he wants to know,
and the student is directed to the best existing literature on the subject.
For instance, under ‘Confucius and Confucianism,’ after three pages of
general description we find a list of nearly a dozen works on the subject ;
under ‘Literature’ we can get ten pages of most useful general information,
and at the end a list of those English books on the subject which are
recommended.
As, of course, there are often many subjects touched upon in one note,
cross references are made, and, still further to add to the reader’s indebtedness,
the work is provided with an index which we calculate contains near ten
thousand references.
Turning from the method of the book to its matter, we find that it
displays a wonderfully wide and varied knowledge of things Chinese, and
that Mr. Ball has the rare gift of imparting his knowledge to his readers
in a magnetic manner that draws one on from subject to subject. Our
empire is so deeply interested in the politics and affairs of the Far East that
it is very reassuring to find Mr. Ball does not share the pessimistic views
of China and its future which many people hold. . . . . . He says :一
‘It is a mistake to look only on this mighty Empire, with its four
hundred million inhabitants—which is beginning to bestir itself and respond
to Western influences—with the official goggles of Peking, and prophesy
jeremiads of woe alone. Strife and commotions, upheavals and rebellions,
will, doubtless, agitate in the future as they have done in the past; but
with further enlightenment and years the elements of good will gain more
power, and tell in the long run.’
Very encouraging to all interested in Christian civilisation are Mr. Ball’s
views on its effects on China; many have felt that there seemed to be too
much truth in the assertions so often made as to the impotence of missionary °
effort in China. But here is a witness on the other side, who knows the
country and the people better than, perhaps, one in a million of other people
and he says :一 :
ADVERTISEMENTS. 177
———
‘The little white stone of Western progress has been cast into the
well-nigh stagnant pool of Chinese thought, and it has sunk deep into its
very heart, unseen to a great extent in its progress; but its influence is
making itself visible on the surface in ever-increasing ripples, which are
extending far and wide.’ ‘A hundred years ago there was not a Prostestant
Christian in Chinaand now there are a hundred thousand, and the great mass
of these have been enroJled during the last fifty years.’ Mr. Ball points
out that if they progress in the future in the ever multiplying numbers, as
they have done in the past, they must become an important influence in the
counsels of China. No one who has watched the progress of Christianity
can doubt this.
Although not in the least blind to weak points in Chinese character, it
will come as a surprise to find that the author has so much to praise and
admire in things Chinese. We, Western nations, have a general feeling of
intellectual superiority over the Chinese and Japanese, but Mr. Ball reminds
us that there is no inherent inferiority, and that the Chinese intellect when
trained is equal to any other in the world. It does not follow that we are
right and they are wrong because they are our opposites in almost every
action and thought.
. . . . . . , . . ’ .
No book could be more opportune in view of the crisis in the Far East.
一 Te Publishers’ Circular, and January, 1904.
Very opportune is the appearance . . . of a new edition of Mr. Dyer
Ball’s Chinese Encyclopedia. . . . The many brief additions scattered
throughout the volume undoubtedly make of it a more useful handbook for
the inquirer than of yore. . . The enormous amount of information respect-
ing the Celestial Empire, which Mr. Ball has collected and here presents
in concise form, could not fail to place an intelligent reader in a position to
form a reasonably correct opinion as to that part of the present day happen-
ings which concern China.
The book itself presents a very clear and just . . . explana-
tion of practically everything which goes to make up Chinese life and
social structure; but, what is perhaps from the student’s standpoint an
almost more important feature, there is appended to nearly every article a
list of the most trustworthy authorities on that particular subject. The
pages on Buddhism and on slavery are as good as any in the book,
the former taken in connection with the articles of Confucianism,
Taoism and Religion, presenting as true a picture of the spiritual condition
of the Chinese, and its often perplexing manifestation in national character
and politics, as anything of equal length likely to find its way into the hands
of the ordinary unspecialised reader. The pages, scattered in various parts
I78 ADVERTISEMENTS.
of the volume, dealing with diseases, their treatment and cause, are extre-
mely interesting reading . . . . . In ‘Things Chinese’ Mr. Ball has
manifested his wonted character of optimist. Whether the subject be
Christian missions, or the growth of Western learning; of the advance to
power of the Progressive party, or the cure of the opium curse, he looks
always to the bright side, and in every case supports his sanguine views
by arguments based on sound knowledge of the Chinese, and of those various
factors which, during the past century, have tended to modify the national
character. The impression of a reader who perused the book from cover to
cover—a method not to be specially recommended, because so great wealth of
facts would prove beyond the average mental digestion—can hardly fail to
be that after all, China is not so impossible an Empire as disconnected press
telegrams and articles had led him to suppose. And if that result be effected,
the ‘revised and enlarged fourth edition’ will have scored the success it
deserves. Mr. Ball's reputation for accuracy is well established among
Anglo-Chinese people; but it may be observed in conclusion that hardly an
exaggeration or a misstatement of authentic fact occurs in the additions to
the earlier presentments of this work.—Pall Mall Gazette, 8th April, 1904.
Mr. J. Dyer Ball of the Civil Service of Hongkong, and the author
of a long list of books on the Chinese language, has revised and enlarged his
‘ Things Chinese’ (John Murray), which is now in its fourth edition. This
work performs the same service for inquirers about China as Mr. Basil Hall
Chamberlain’s ‘Things Japanese’ does for the student of Japan, for it is
an alphabetical encyclopedia of Chinese life and customs. The author has
supplemented his knowledge of Chinese and other literature by his own
direct investigation and observation, extending over forty years spent in the
Far East. His book is a rich mine of definite knowledge which, in the new
edition, is everywhere brought up to date. Where the author’s knowledge
has not sufficed he has obtained the aid of experts in particular branches of
information. The revision has been of a painstaking character, and to the
publicist there is no work of reference on China which is so comprehensive
and yet so compact as this.—Standard, 5th April, 1904.
An alphabetically arranged account, the work of one who had nearly
forty years’ knowledge of the country and people.—The Spectator, 30th
January, 1904.
Mildy optimistic about China. In a new preface to his comprehensive
and very useful work, he says that foreign writers are apt to forget the latent
power for good still possessed by the ‘new party’ in the Empire, despite
the defeats inflicted upon it by the reactionists. Though the corruption,
pride and self-sufficiency of the ‘old party’ may not be swept away fora
long time the new force which has arisen, with its freshly inspired
ADVERTISEMENTS. 179
patriotism, is bound, Mr. Ball thinks, to increase as knowledge increases.
. ‘The foremost men are yearning for progress towards a higher plane
of existence for their native country and themselves.’ Mr. Ball has been
forty years in China and ought to be able to read the signs of the times. In
the body of his work he discusses everything Chinese, from Abacus to
Zoology.—London Paper, February, 1904.
Handy dictionary of ‘Things Chinese’ . . . now issued ina fourth
revised and enlarged edition. . . . For ready reference there is nothing like
it (for China), and it is readable as ordinary dictionaries are not.—The New
York Nation, 31st March, 1904.
We have so much to do with the Celestials in commerce and religious
effort that it is almost a duty to acquire as much information as possible
about their government, language, history, and customs. Mr. Ball’s book
isin parts re-written and brought up to date; its information, so far as
we can test it, is trustworthy ; and for those who want a handy book of
reference on China no more useful work can be recommended. . . . Several
of the articles are lengthy and very comprehensive, ¢.g., literature, secret
societies, history. For those who desire to add to their knowledge every
important article has a list of works by various writers with a brief notice of
their contents, and the reader may trust Mr. Ballas a guide in selecting
such books. Our author writes fairly and dispassionately on missions. . .
Mr. Ball helps us to understand China and the Chinese.—Church Times,
15th April, 1904.
Mr. Dyer Ball’s book under this title has been known to us almost
from the first days of its publication. It is now in its fourth edition and
brought up to date. . . . . It is alphabetical, and thus anything that is
wanted can be readily turned up under its own title, and where the informa-
tion is necessarily condensed the reader is referred to the best works in which
the subject, whatever it may be, is treated im extenso. We have many a
time and oft had occasion to turn to the pages of ‘Things Chinese’ and very
rarely indeed did we fail to find at least something of value in the pages
consulted. There is a complete index which makes full and cross reference
possible, and when we say that the work has nowrun to more than 800
pages it is evident that there is ready at hand a storehouse of well-digested
information, fit equally for the student, the visitor, the general reader and the
sinologue. All will find much of interest, and a great deal that is
valuable, and there is little doubt but that the sale of the new edition will
surpass that of all its predecessors, as indeed it deserves to do. The work
has been admirably printed and got up. . . . The cover is in imperial
yellow cloth, impressed with a most effective ornamental design in gold.
I8o ADVERTISEMENTS.
Having said so much, we may be now permitted to dip into the book itself
to show how widely useful are its contents. Let us suppose, for example,
that we are interested in the Bibliography of China. We turn to page 102 and
there, under ‘ Books on China,’ we find little literary Kodak pictures of the
best literature on the subject. William’s ‘ Middle Kingdom,’ Arch. Gray’s
‘China,’ Doolittle’s ‘Social Life of the Chinese,’ and so go on for eight
pages and more, each book boldly outlined. Or, as may be quite probable, a
seeker for information may hail as his chief the 1. G. Thirsting for a
succinct account of the Imperial Maritime Customs Service, he will turn to
page 192, and there find all that is needed. Does he need points on etiquette,
he will find them. Has he any difficulty in comparing his Mandarin
tongue with a local dialect ? He will find here pages of it. Is he puzzled to
find pegs on which to hang the main events of Chinese history as an English
boy hangs many of his upon A. D. 1066? He will find that Mr. Ball has
anticipated his wishes and prepared for his wants. Or perhaps in some out-
of-the-way station, he may need facts wherewith to confute native ideas
respecting the origin of malaria, ‘Things Chinese’ once again comes to the
rescue and supplies him with four pages of up-to-date science, vouched for
by an M.D. It will be found under the heading of ‘Mosquitoes.’ The
missionary will doubtless turn to opium. He will find all that is of import-
ance respecting it. He will find admirable little eye-openers in the form of
paragraphs dealing with native beliefs, manners, customs, andsoon. Hardly
any phase of life but that is touched upon somewhat or other. If he be of
the medical fraternity, he can learn how plague originated (so far as China
is concerned) in Yunnan years ago, and thence has spread. This is an
important subject and considerably more than twenty pages are devoted to
it. The layman, especially he of the little out-port, in times of threatened
trouble, will want to know what has happened in the way of riot and
disturbance in days gone by. He will find it all under its appropriate
heading. So will he be supplied with articles on sport, on botany, or
geology, on trade, and so on. One of the most interesting of the many
things connected with the awakening of China is the growth of the power
of her press. On page 478-482 Mr. Ball gives aclear account of the growth
of the newspaper press for Chinese readers, at home and abroad.
On Chinese literature generally, there is an article covering ten pages,
enough to whet one’s appetite for more and to give the beginner in ‘Things
Chinese’ something firm to grasp while he looks round for detailed authors
that he may make his own. At the moment China is beginning to be
exercised respecting her system of law. It is not that China is lawless; far
from it, but her undigested mass of decrees needs codifying, and her new-
born desire to do something like Japan has done, which shall once more
rehabilitate her in the eyes of the nations cannot be achieved until she has
ADVERTISEMENTS. 181
so remodelled her system as to make Western nations willing to give up
the extra-territoriality which she feels such a disgrace in the eyes of the
world. It is not generally known yet, but we believe it to be a fact that
China has already taken steps to have her laws overhauled by a Western
expert. This makes the ten pages given by Mr. Ball more than ordinarily
interesting and valuable at the present moment. There are many scores of
pages of matter that will be of benefit to such of our readers as wish to
make a really scientific study of ‘ Things Chinese,’ Ethnology, Physiology,
Medicine, Disease, Law, Government, Naval and Military matters, Folklore,
Geography, Botany, History, Commerce, and hundreds of other things,
some important intrinsically, some interesting in connection with others.
There are no fewer than 53 separate references to Shanghai and its trade,
history, and soon. But we must come to an end, even in the review of so
useful and necessary a work as this, and, in closing our remarks, can give
our readers no better advice than to buy the book for themselves. They
will find it all we have said and more.—Shanghait Mercury, 26th February,
1904.
Of the multitude of books about China which have issued from the
press it may well be claimed that none are of more popular use and interest
than Mr. Dyer Ball’s ‘Things Chinese’ which has now run into a fourth
edition. The revisions and additions have increased the number of pages to
816 including an index and glossary. For almost any ‘Thing Chinese’ on
which the reader requires enlightenment he will in all probability not seek
in vain in these pages, and if the information be too concise for his purposes,
the author supplies at the foot of each note a list of books recommended
for further reference. While acknowledging his indebtedness to other writers,
the author mentions in the preface that he has largely availed himself of his
own personal observations and experiences in the course of nearly forty
years spent in China, during which he has had many opportunities of observ-
ing and studying the Chinese in almost every aspect of their life and character.
Mr. Dyer Ball’s qualifications for writing a book of this description are
well known to most residents in Hongkong, and the fact that the fourth
edition of the book is now on sale is a proof of its public interest and utility.
It took rank from its first publication as a standard work of reference on
matters Chinese, and we have pleasure in commending the volume to all who
do not already possess it. Though the alterations and additions are not, as
the author admits, large in bulk, they are very numerous in quantity, and
consequently the fourth edition may be recommended as more complete and
accurate than its predecessors. The new edition has been well printed.—
Hongkong Daily Press, 12th March, 1904.
182 ADVERTISEMENTS.
MACAO : THE HOLY CITY--THE GEM OF
THE ORIENT EARTH
A book on an Eastern subject by such an authority as Mr. Dyer Ball
cannot fail to be instructive, and we have no doubt in this volume he will
keep up to the high standard of his previous works.—China Mail, 2gth
September, 1904.
From the pen of that gifted oriental scholar, Mr. J. Dyer Ball, m.R.a.s.,
the book may be relied upon to be brightly and comprehensively written.—
Hongkong Telegraph, 28th September, 1904.
The author of this little work is well known in the East as a gentle-
man who is conversant with Eastern subjects and who is able to speak with
no small degree of authority. . . . He treats of his subject com-
prehensively. . . . To the visitor, it undoubtedly will be a welcome
guide.—South China Morning Post, 16th May, 1905.
An. . exhaustive index may make the book useful to visitors who
want to see all there is to see at Macao.—Honghkong Daily Press, 4th May,
1905.
THE RELIGIONS OF THE CELESTIAL:
OR
THE RELIGIOUS ASPECT IN CHINA.
Mr. J. Dyer Ball gave the first of a series of lectures on ‘The Religious
Beliefs in China.’ The special topic was ‘The Primeval Conception of God
in China and the Primitive Religion of the Chinese.’ There was a good attend-
ance and those who heard Mr. Ball were by no means disappointed. The
lecture was intensely interesting and did credit to the lecturer.—Y. M. C. A.
Bulletin, 8th March, 1905.
The lecture room was filled by an appreciative audience to listen to
the second of Mr. Ball’s lectures. The subject was ‘ Confucianism ’ and a
clear and forcible presentation of the life and teachings of the greatest
Chinese sage was given to us. The large attendance is an indication of
the increasing interest in these most instructive and helpful lectures.—
Y,.M.C. A. Bulletin, 15th March, r1go5.
Excellent is the term we must use in describing the lecture, the high
standard of the previous lectures being maintained.—Y. M. C. A. Bulletin,
22nd March, 1905.
ADVERTISEMENTS. 183
A large and appreciative audience heard Mr. Ball’s lecture on ‘The
Arabian Prophet in China.’ The lecture was intensely interesting and
instructive.—Y. M.C. A. Bulletin, 5th April, 1905.
As this course of lectures advances the interest is continually increas-
ing.—Y. M. C. A. Bulletin, tath April, 1905.
These lectures have been much appreciated—Y. M. C. A. Bulletin,
26th April, 1905.
There seems every probability of that valuable human relic of antiquity
—the Jewish settlements of inland China—being lost without any further
effort on the part of the scientist to trace out the information and determine
the character of the evidence afforded by these vanishing communities and
their ruined temples.
To one or two Oriental scholars—Mr. Dyer Ball, Mr. Colquhoun,
Dr. Griffiths John, and perhaps a few other writers, together with two
or three Roman Catholic missionaries of the past—we owe most of the
little knowledge we do possess, rather than to antiquarians or research
experts, although there can be no doubt the subject is full of interest, both
human and theological. The roll of Scripture taken from Kai-fong-fu
to Hongkong during the latter part of the last century, and now to be seen
in the Museum, is of the Pentateuch only. According to Mr. Dyer Ball,
this copy of the law corresponds very exactly with the ordinary Hebrew
versions familiar to scriptists although there are a few ‘character’ variations
not affecting the text.—The Standard, The Evening Standard, and St. James's
Gazette.—(London), 13th July, 1905.
The Pith of the Classics:
THE CHINESE CLASSICS IN EVERYDAY LIFE:
OR
QUOTATIONS FROM THE CHINESE CLASSICS
IN COLLOQUIAL USE.
The volume of quotations from the Chinese classics in colloquial use, now
published by Messrs. Noronha & Co., giving the pith of the classics, seems
to be designed for the information of students to guide them to an apprecia-
tion of some of the better known passages of Chinese literature. But in it,
Mr. J. Dyer Ball, the energetic author, has so well and faithfully under-
taken his work that the book is of the highest value to everyone who is in
any way brought in contact with the Chinese language. In 71 pages he has
set forth a selection of quotations made ‘with the object of gathering
I84 ADVERTISEMENTS.
together the words or phrases, or sentences in the classics, used in everyday
conversation, and understood by nearly everyone, be he man or woman,
merchant or coolie.’ A very copious index, which is not confined to the
words in the passages quoted, should enable anyone to find whatever he
wants, which may be contained init. It is pointed out that the volume only
contains quotations from the Four Books, though it is interesting to note that
the author has already prepared a second series of similar quotations selected
from the Five Classics. Asanyone acquainted with the works of Mr. Dyer Ball
would expect, the volume is most carefully compiled and bears the stamp of ，
one whose extensive knowledge of things Chinese cannot be gainsaid. It is
published at $2 a copy.—Hongkong Telegraph, 14th September, 1905.
Mr. J. Dyer Ball has added to the debt which every student of the
Chinese language owes to him by the production of this little volume. In
his preface the learned author explains that his object has been to select
from the pages of the classics, such phrases as are in common use and under-
stood by all classes. In the present volume only the Four Books, that is to
say the Analects, the Doctrine of the Mean, the Great Learning, and the
Book of Mencius, are laid under contribution, but the author promisesa Second
Series, which will comprise the Five Classics and thus complete his survey
of the whole field of Chinese classical antiquity.
It is an ungrateful task to criticize an author who has done so much for
the literary reputation of the Colonial Service as Mr. Dyer Ball, and whose
authority as a Chinese scholar stands so high. Moreover in this particular
volume the author does not lay claim to any original research, his object is
rather to bring within the reach of the general public the results of the
labours of other masters of Chinese scholarship, which would otherwise have
remained practically inaccessible. It is to be hoped that many persons will
avail themselves of the opportunity which this little volume offers of fami-
liarising themselves with the essence of those works which, as the author
says, permeate the whole of Chinese thought. No one can do so without
being struck at the manner in which the apothegms of the Chinese sages
approach closely those maxims of Christianity with which the whole Western
world is familiar. . . . . . . . A volume which the public generally
and the European community in China in particular cannot too heartily
welcome.-—South China Morning Post, 15th September, 1905.
Mr. Dyer Ball has here given to the English-speaking public a new
work, whose purpose is to assist the student of Chinese to acquire a know-
ledge of, and even a mastery over, the current quotations from the Four
Books, which have found their way into everyday use among the Chinese
people. As Campbell’s ‘’Tis distance lends enchantment to the view,’ and
Burn’s ‘Hope springs exulting on triumphant wing,’ for example, have
ADVERTISEMENTS. 185
become current coin among Englishmen who make any pretence to educa-
tion, so almost numberless lines are used by Chinese scholars, and, of these,
many, it is affirmed, are quoted even by the uneducated. Mr. Ball has now
introduced these quotations tothe reader. . . . . . . . Aglanceat
the index—which is a capital feature of the book—shows that the range of
subjects touched on is large. The Analects of Confucius, the Works of
Mencius, the Great Learning, and the Doctrine of the Mean have each
contributed a share.
We have the Chinese text, a translation, and a note explaining the use
to which the quotation is applied . . . . . The translation is usually
that of Dr. Legge’s, and, therefore, thoroughly reliable. . . . . . The
book will be useful, if studied, and help those who aspire to a competent
command of colloquial language of the Chinese with a touch of elegance
thrown in.
We like the idea of this book, and agree that it will be of great use to
students of colloquial Chinese who wish to improve their conversational
powers and get on a more sympathetic footing with their native acquain-
tances. These quotations from the Four Books will be scanned with
considerable interest even by those who have no Chinese smattering, for it
is patent that in such a collection of the favourite quotations from the classics
we have good evidence of the thought-processes of the masses.
The well-known — = 以 Ax vs is a very useful phrase to memorise
phonetically, as coming from a foreign devil it should startle the most gar-
rulous servant into brevity. It is not difficult to imagine how much trouble
has been caused by the adage ‘ The study of strange doctrines is injurious,
indeed,’ especially when the author explains that, as is to be expected, it can
be applied to any new thing, apart from doctrines. All men are liars, and
perhaps we have no right to criticise, but it is strange to read that an adage,
in regular use among the most ready prevaricators on earth, is one saying
that without truthfulness a man cannot geton. . . . . Weare told
that the text, ‘ When he entered the Grand Temple (he) asked about every-
thing’ is often used as an excuse for inquisitiveness in this way, ‘The Master
was inquisitive soI can be.’ This reminds us of the people who quote Paul's
advice to Timothy as an excuse for drinking, or Christ’s words in the cornfield
as an excuse for Sabbath breaking, or His anger with the money-changers
in the Temple as an excuse for bad temper! . . . . « + » One for
which we can recall no foreign equivalent (and there ought to be one) is
‘Straightforwardness, without the rules of propriety, becomes rudeness.’
It does, as all know who meet the man who boasts of always speaking his
mind! On page 2othere is an allusion to the universal practice in Hongkong
I86 ADVERTISEMENTS.
of styling a ‘Boy’ a Ie 生 (a title of respect belonging properly to a
man who knows how to use pen and ink). Perhaps that is why Hongkong
‘boys’ are so uppish and cheeky. ‘The mechanic who wishes to do
his work well, must first sharpen his tools’ is ‘used when one has bad
tools, or a bad pen, etc.’ Don’t the Chinese ever use it in the sense of
‘Keep your powder dry’ then? The Chinese version of ‘ You cannot get
blood out of a stone’ seems to be ‘You cannot get juice out of an iron
pear” . . . . . . The book . . is well printed and cleanly read.
: It only remains to be said that a second series, as half
wisiiteed, will be a welcome addition to the list of useful books which this
indefatigable and able sinologue has produced.
THE ABOVE WORKS ARE ON SALE
In Hongkong:
At Messrs. KELLY & WALSH’S.
In Shanghai: In, Yokohama:
At Messrs. KELLY & WALSH’S. At Messrs. KELLY & WALSH'S.
In Singapore:
At Messrs. KELLY & WALSH’S.
Singapore :
KELLY & WALSH, LIMITED, PRINTERS,
32 RAFFLES PLACE AND 194 ORCHARD Roap.
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